


Fear Of Flying

by Latte



Category: Necessary Roughness
Genre: F/M, Mystery, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-22
Updated: 2013-02-22
Packaged: 2017-12-03 05:19:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 57,143
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/694595
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Latte/pseuds/Latte
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Begins at end of S1. A spiked drink, a frightened woman, and a man who will do anything to protect her begin a journey that will change their lives.</p><p>It's Dani and Nico all the way and how I would have liked to see the months that followed the first season played out.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Stepping Into The Darkness

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own Necessary Roughness or any of its characters. I just like to add a bit of romance into their lives. 
> 
> Note: I may frighten the characters I play with, but I never hurt them.
> 
> Huge thanks to Olfactory-Ventriloquism for the wonderful beta work.

_3 AM - The Thursday January 12, 2012 –_

The cell phone vibrated insistently against his abdomen, waking Nico Careles from a restless sleep. He swung his feet over the side of the couch, running one hand through unkempt hair as he put the phone to his ear.

“Talk to me, Margaret.” He said curtly. Leaning his elbows on his knees, he locked out all emotion; fear and anger wouldn’t help now, but later, when he found the person or people responsible, he would put the anger to good use. 

“It was as you suspected,” Dr. Margaret Browning, head of Emergency Medicine at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital and one of Nico’s many contacts, sighed. “The liquid in the glass you gave me was carbonated water laced with Rohypnol. No alcohol, thank God. The drug is bad enough on its own, if there had been anything stronger than water mixed with it, I doubt she would have been lucid enough to call you.” 

“And the rape kit?” He clenched his fist; the images the question brought to mind were unimaginable. 

“It was negative.”

“You’re sure?” Nico demanded.

“As sure as I can be. The swabs didn’t turn up anything unusual: no semen, no spermicide, and no lubricant. I didn’t see any damage when I took the specimens last night. Unfortunately, enough of that kind of thing comes through the Emergency Department. I know what to look for.”

“Jesus,” he gasped, remembering pacing the living room while Dr. Browning had examined the unconscious woman in his bedroom. “I sometimes wonder how you can do what you do.”

“It’s necessary,” her words were soft, clear and honest. “And I can help people, if they let me.” 

He waited for her to add the obvious, ‘that she wondered how he could do what he did’, when she didn’t, he was gratified. “Thanks for the house call...for the help.” 

“She’ll wake up with the mother of all hangovers and no memory of what happened. You’re going to have to tell her everything, including my visit last night. None of that evasive language you’ve perfected to an art form. It may keep you honest while giving very little away, but that’s not what she needs right now.”

“I’ll take care of it.” He pursed his lips; the doctor was too damn observant. “How’s Val doing?” He asked about her husband as much from interest as a need to deflect the conversation.

“He’s much better. I’ll never be able to repay you for getting him out of trouble. He attends AA regularly and hasn’t missed a day of work since he left rehab.”

“You don’t owe me anything, especially after last night.” Nico was in a hurry to get off the phone and impatience leaked through his usually calm tone. 

“We can argue about who owes whom later. There is more you need to know.” Margaret was perturbed and let it show. It was always the same when dealing with Careles, once he’d concluded his business he faded into the shadows. “It may not be wise to keep this below the radar. When you brought me in, you made her my patient, so she comes first. You have to ask her what she wants. She wasn’t raped but that doesn’t mean she won’t feel violated. She is going to need therapy and reporting what happened may be a first step in working it through."

She was his responsibility; one he'd taken on because he'd wanted to, not because he'd thought it was necessary. A ghost of a smile tugged at his lips when he thought of how indignant she would be, if she knew how much he’d learned about her. Moments later, he buried the thought and the odd warm feeling that had accompanied it. “I’ll do whatever is best for her.” It was all he was willing to say on the matter.

“Even if it is in direct conflict with what is best for The Hawks?” Browning pushed. 

“Good night, Margaret, give Val my best.” His voice was cold steel. He wasn’t about to explain that what was good for her was good for the Hawks. It was something he knew in the marrow of his bones, and it helped ease his conscious. 

It was for the team. All the snooping into her background and watching over her these last months was for the team. There was nothing personal about it. When he put it in that context, it made sense, and he felt the long muscles in his back begin to relax. Nico kept repeating the sentiment like a mantra in his head, as he left a text for Xeno. He’d sent his large ex-Special Forces friend to the club the night before to start the investigation. It wasn’t in Careles’ nature to delegate a sensitive situation, but his priorities had shifted the moment he’d understood the worst-case scenario. 

After all, taking care of her was in the team’s best interest.

Rubbing his eyes, he flipped on his espresso machine so it would heat up while he showered. The thought of what could have happened tonight left him feeling dirty in ways he hadn’t felt in a very long time.

“Therapy, hmmm,” he sighed as the light from the bathroom gave him a glimpse of dark hair kissed with sunlight scattered across his pillow. Her face was in shadow but he knew every laugh line and curve of her cheek. He’d seen her fighting mad and gently soothing a person in sorrow. Who the hell was going to be the one to give therapy to the therapist? Who the hell was going to sooth her sorrows? He’d be damned if it was going to be that fly-by-night guy she’d been seeing. 

.....................

_Thursday 4:10 AM –_

Nico sat with his bare feet crossed at the ankles and propped on the foot of the bed watching Dani Santino sleep. He was dressed in faded blue jeans with a rip in the left knee and an old white button-down, the sleeves rolled to just below his elbows. Light from the partially open bathroom door cast shadows on her sleeping face and made the wall of windows, at his back sparkle with raindrops, as a pre-dawn storm rolled in. His iPad was in his lap and a large latte was within easy reach on the bedside table. He had been trying to concentrate on the report Xeno had sent him from the first round of interviews, but he’d read it twice and very little was making sense. He kept remembering the sound of panic in Dani’s voice when she’d called him less than six hour earlier.

....................

_Wednesday January 11, 2012 at 10:55 PM -_

“Nico, I need...uh...back up,” Dani’s words came through his cell slurred and slow. 

“Dr. Santino, have you been drinking?” He grinned at her unusual behavior. 

“No, no...But I feel...I feel...Oh God...everything is spinning,” she gasped. “Help me?”

“Where are you?” Icy terror shot through him. She was in trouble, and he should have realized it the second he saw her caller ID. She almost never called him, and when she did, it was never at odd hours.

“In the...uh...uh...Ladies’ Room?” she asked as if she wasn’t sure herself.

“Dani, think, concentrate.” He ordered. “Where are you?” He was in the elevator heading for the parking garage of his loft in the Village, but he needed more information if he was going to find her.

“Uh...Solstice...yeah…Solstice,” she sighed. “Jeanette…no,” she shook her head and almost lost her balance. “Not Jeanette…Margo…meet me but couldn’t…I think…it’s all fuzzy.”

“That’s okay.” He drove uptown as fast as he could to the trendy club. It was one of Terrance King’s favorite post-game hangouts. Many of The Hawks spent time there. It would complicate matters if any of the team was there tonight, and it could become a publicity nightmare, but that was the least of his concerns. For now, all he wanted to do was to keep Dani talking so that he knew she was safe. “Are you still in the restroom?” 

“Yeah...please hurry…I…feel so strange.” She was cold and hot at the same time, and nothing was making any sense. Ideas slipped through her mind and were lost in the corners of the room before she could grab onto them and make them stick.

“You’re doing great. Just stay where you are. I’m almost there. Did you eat or drink anything at the club?”

“Pellegrino,” she whispered. Her mouth was dry and she was thirsty. She had a death grip on the glass she’d been drinking from but a tiny voice in her head warned her against having anymore. 

“Dr. Santino, talk to me!” he demanded.

“I...what...about...” her speech was heavily slurred, and she was sounding more confused.

“Where are your children? Tell me about Lindsey and Ray Jay?” 

“Ummm they’re not here...uhh Ray...he...uh...uh...the Hamptons for uh…week?” Again she posed it as a question, doubting her memory and everything that was happening. “I’m so tired....

“Dani, you keep your eyes open and keep talking to me.” One quick glare at the doorman and he was slipped past the velvet rope and long line of people who were waiting to get into Solstice. Loud music made it hard for him to understand the soft words coming from the phone pressed to his ear. 

“Please hurry,” she whispered. Every muscle in her body was gripped tightly in an attempt to stay upright.

Nico’s long stride ate up the distance across the room. His dark coat flapped around his calves. Moments later, he opened the door to the Ladies’ room and found Dr. Santino leaning against the wall her eyes half closed.

“Dani, I’m here,” he called to her before he touched her.

“Nico, I can hardly stand up.” She went easily into his arms, allowing him to support her.

“It’s no wonder with those shoes.” His eyebrow arched as if he was examining her footwear when he was really doing an inventory of the condition of her clothes. Nothing was torn or messy under her leather jacket and her slim fitting jeans were zipped and fastened.

“Help me, please.” She looked up at him glad he was holding onto her because her muscles were slowly loosing the ability to support her. 

“Are you hurt...did any one try to hurt you?” He slid his hand against her neck, tilting her face upward, trying to read truths she might not want to share. Her eyes were dilated and glassy, lacking their usual sparkle but all he could see was confusion.

“Hurt…me?” Dani’s nose crinkled as she tried to make sense out of his question.

“Yeah, you had me worried.” He forced a smile. “Lets get out of here. Can you walk?”

She nodded, but when she didn’t move, he pulled her tightly against his side and slowly guided her out of her hiding place.

“Hey what’s going on?” Danny Martello, the owner of Solstice, took one look at the tall dark man practically carrying the small woman out of the rest room and knew he’d missed his chance. His only option was to play the part of concerned manager and hope that she didn’t remember him.

“My friend has had a little too much to drink.” Nico stopped and looked the man coolly in the eyes. He’d carefully tucked Dani against his chest. His free hand covered her face from chin to hairline, hiding her identity from prying eyes. 

“Ya need help?” Danny questioned, putting as much concern as he could in his voice. “I can call ya a cab?”

“No.” He felt Dani begin to shiver and as she tried to tighten her grip on the front of his coat, he realized her muscles weren’t cooperating. He wasn’t sure how much longer she would remain on her feet even with his right arm wrapped around her and his hand digging into her upper arm. If he ended up carrying her out of the club, it would be all over town by morning.

“Nico, can we please get out of here.” She carefully strung her words together with only an occasional slur.

“Nico?” Martello paled when he realized he was talking to the head of security for The Hawks. Danny had heard the dark man’s name whispered around the City for years, but had never been able to put a face to that name, until tonight. The club owner had always scoffed at the other man’s reputation, believing that Careles used anonymity to make people think he was more dangerous, than he really was. One look at Nico’s flat dark eyes and cold demeanor changed that theory forever. “Sorry Sir, I didn’t realize… I…uh…” Before he finished stuttering out an apology the couple was out the door.

Danny broke into a sweat and his hands shook. This was bad, very bad. He’d never realized that Terrance King’s honeys carried enough weight to bring the head of security down on his head.  
…..  
It wasn’t until Nico was helping Dani into his car, that he realized she was still holding her glass from earlier in the evening. One quick look was all it took to see that it still contained some of the potentially dangerous liquid.

“You are one smart woman, Dr. Santino.” He smiled at her as he put the half full glass in the coffee cup-holder of his car and carefully fastened her seat belt for her.

“Taken…you…long enough to figure…to figure--” She lost her battle to stay awake and slumped against his arm.

“You go right ahead and sleep, Dani.” He straightened her carefully against the seatback and fastened the safety belt. “You’re safe. I’ve got you, now.”


	2. Lost But Not Alone

_4:58 AM_

Dani Santino woke slowly to a pounding head, nausea, and a light, vaguely familiar scent of spiced lime coming from her pillowcase.

“Ohhh,” she moaned and forced her eyes open.

“Easy, you’re safe.” Nico Careles leaned forward in his chair to tunnel his fingers through her hair, pushing it away from her face.

“Nico!” she squeaked. Even feeling like death warmed-over, she recognized his distinctive timbre. “What are you doing in my house?”

“We aren’t in your house...” His natural inclination was to leave it at that, a half finished piece of information that allowed him to tell the truth without giving any details, but Dr. Browning’s warning from the night before made him continue, “We’re in mine.”

“Yours...but...I…we…?” Dani instinctively looked under the covers and was relieved to discover she was still wearing her tank top and jeans from the night before, though her loose fitting metallic fishnet sweater and leather jacket was missing. “We didn’t...ah...you and I?” She flicked her finger back and forth between them.

“No we didn’t.” He smiled gently, understanding what she needed to know. 

“Everything is vague…I can’t remember how I got here.” Her voice was rough with emotions that were threatening to swamp her. Something dark and frightening lurked deep in her mind but she couldn’t pin it down. 

“How badly are you hurting?” He reached to cup her shoulder but drew back when uncertainty flittered across her face.

“I think my head is going to fall off.”

“Close your eyes.” He instructed. “I’m going to turn on the lamp.” Moments later, soft light from a reading lamp with a blue leaded-glass shade created an intimate pool around them. “Is that too bright for you?”

“It’s fine...but...but what am I doing here?” She blinked, as much to control the sudden sting of tears that threatened to fall, as to get used to the illumination. “Why can’t I remember anything?” 

“Sit up and take these first.” He shook two Ibuprofens onto the table next to a glass of water and leaned over to help her sit up. 

“Nico, what aren’t you telling me?” She leaned tensely against the pillows he’d put between her back and the headboard. “Don’t you understand, not knowing is more frightening than anything you could tell me.”

“There is nothing to be afraid of. You are perfectly safe. Now take the these.” He handed her the pills and steadied the glass for her. It took all of his self-control to keep from reaching out to her, touching her, doing anything to help her, as she choked and almost gagged on the pills. Because he knew that she was wrong and what he had to tell her was a lot worse than ignorance.

“I’m all right. They’re down.” She reassured him as she pulled her knees up and curled her arms around them. “Now tell me what happened.” She demanded. “What am I doing in your bed with all of my clothes on?”

The air seemed to be sucked out of the room. The only sound was the heavy patter of rain on the bank of windows behind Nico as he met Dani’s gaze. Both knew that there was more between them than business. Both had wondered what if...but neither was willing to take a chance, because they knew that once breached, the walls they’d put in place would never withstand the explosion that would follow. He protected his side with cool looks, evasive answers, and stories about birds that flew best alone. She used sarcasm, the excuse of professional ethics, and when all else failed to keep her from thinking about him as more than a friend, pretended he was simply hired muscle.

Her last question cut to the bone of something that Careles was not going to answer, truth be damned. Some truths were too dangerous to bring to light, so he did what he’d learned to do when he’d tried to keep a marriage together while being a member of a covert Navy SEAL team. It was a skill that he’d honed to perfection during three years of law school and used almost everyday since going to work for Marshall Pittman: if you don’t like the question, don’t answer it; pose one of your own. “What do you remember about last night?”

“Hmmm?” She blinked realizing she’d been caught staring. “What?” she whispered.

“Last night, what do you remember?” He leaned back in the old Gustav Stickley rocker that had been his grandfather’s.

“Most of the night is fuzzy. All I remember for sure is that I was supposed to meet my friend Margo at Solstice. I was sitting at the bar when I realized how late it was getting and checked my messages. Her son was ill. She couldn’t make it.” Dani rubbed her forehead trying to remember more. “I’d ordered a glass of Pellegrino, I think...but beyond that it’s all blank.” She looked up needing to know what else happened. “Were you there? Is Solstice your Friday night place?”

“No, you called me.” He hated to do this but knew it was necessary. “Someone put Rohypnol into your drink.”

“Rohypnol,” she gulped, “the date rape drug?” her voice whistled with panic. What little color she had drained out of her face. She threw back the covers, clamped her hands over her mouth and tumbled off the bed as her stomach twisted. If Nico hadn’t grabbed her, she would have hit the floor, instead he carried her into the bathroom. Seconds before she lost the battle to control her stomach he knelt with her beside the toilet. One arm was securely around her waist, as he dug his free hand into her hair pulling it up and out of her face. 

“Shhhh it’s all right. You’re safe. I’ve got you,” he whispered over and over, his lips pressed against her ear while Dani threw up until her body shook with dry heaves.

“You should have taken me to an emergency room.” She complained weakly when she could, slumped against him exhausted and trembling from exertion and from too many emotions to count.

“I did better than that. I brought the emergency room to you.” He wiped tears off her cheeks with a cool wet washcloth and pulled her closer, trying to keep her warm. “Her name is Dr. Margaret Browning, and I’ve already emailed you her contact numbers. Here, rinse out your mouth.” He handed her a glass of water from the counter between double sinks, only one of which was used.

Dani gulped the water and spit it out, afraid that if she swallowed the smallest amount it would set her stomach off again. With hands that shook, she wiped her lips and turned to face Nico.

“How ba...bad?” her voice broke, but she refused to look away. “What did Dr. Browning find?” She was sure he knew. Screw doctor patient confidentiality. If she’d had an examination of any kind while in his care, he knew the outcome.

“The exam and the rape kit were negative.”

“What does that mean?” She needed to hear the words, to know exactly what did or did not happen.

"None of the swabs indicated semen or any evidence of a condom." His voice was stiff and hard, hiding the pain he felt that she'd even had to have the exam, let alone hear the results from him.

"What about the urine test?" Black spots were forming in front of her eyes but she breathed through it.

"Margaret didn't believe it was necessary. When I got there, you had the glass you'd been drinking from with you. That was tested and the lab found your Pellegrino was spiked with Rohypnol."

"I'm sorry, Nico. I'm sorry I put you through that, but...Oh God, I had to know what you knew." She covered her face with her hands and leaned her forehead against his shoulder. It was too much to absorb. There were too many hours that were nothing but a blank wall. As much as she wanted to believe she'd gotten away with nothing but a bad hangover, she knew that people weren't that lucky.

"Shhhh, I know it doesn’t feel like it, but it’s going to be all right." He ran his hands through her hair and up and down her back until he felt her begin to calm down. 

"Dani, look at me." He gently pulled her hands away from her face and tipped her chin upward. "You trust me. I wouldn't lie to you." She looked broken, and he found it physically painful. Dani Santino was a strong woman, but this morning she looked defeated.

"I know. It's just that...I'll never know for certain, no matter what the tests say. Unless I can remember, I'll never know. Ever."

"Add this to the information from Dr. Browning. You called me as soon as you realized there was something wrong. You had gotten yourself to the Ladies Room and made that call. When I got there, you were fighting the drug to stay awake and on your feet. Your clothes were intact and you were buttoned and zipped in all the right places."

"Then why do I feel so...used?" The question made her choke, but this time, she refused to let her stomach win. This time, she gripped the front of Nico's shirt and buried her forehead against his neck, borrowing some of his strength to gain a tiny bit of control.

“Because you were.” He closed his eyes and gave up fighting. He simply held her as tightly as he could, sitting on the bathroom floor, listening to rain pound against the glass block wall that ran the length of the room. She’d been forced past the boundaries of her safe world, and for the moment, she needed someone to hang onto. He would be that person and give her the added stability of complete truth not simple honesty. “You were used. You were drugged. But if I believed someone had had his hands on you, there would be police here right now.” He didn’t add that those police would probably be arresting him for murder.

“Does anyone have to know?”

“That’s up to you. You’re the therapist.”

“I don’t feel like much of one.” She sniffed and wiped tears off her face while she pulled back until she was sitting on her knees between his spread thighs. “I don’t know what I’d tell a patient. My mind is too jumbled to think straight.”

“You’d tell her she needed therapy.” 

“You’re right.” She wrapped her arms around her body to keep from crumbling. Dani wanted very badly to be alone so she could fall apart and try to rebuild. “I really appreciate the hospitality but would you take me home? My car must still be at the club, if it hasn’t been impounded.”

“Your car is parked next to mine in my building’s parking garage. Rohypnol can remain in the system for as long as thirteen hours. You’re staying right here where I can keep an eye on you until at least noon. Then, I’ll take you home.” He expected her to argue with him, and when she didn’t, he realized no matter how much better she was pretending she felt, she was still balancing on the edge.

“Could I...um...use your shower?” Dani whispered. She felt tears bubbling up in the back of her throat, and she needed privacy to let them fall.

“Sure.” He reached into a large drawer behind him and handed her a clean towel and washcloth. “There is shampoo and soap on the ledge. The door opens inward. There is a robe in the closet.” He pointed to the door at the far end of the room, between a large whirlpool tub on the left, against the glass block wall, and a stall shower on the right. “Toss your clothes into the bedroom and I’ll put them in the washer.”

“Thanks.” She shuddered, wishing she could simply throw them away.  
......................

Dani slid to the shower floor, sitting with her back pressed against a tile bench. She wrapped both arms around her bent knees and buried her face in the crook of her elbow. She was finally alone, safely hidden by the sound of hot water pounding on her head and shoulders and echoing off the walls. With each ragged breath, her tiny scrap of hard won control slipped a bit more until she was rocked with jagged tears.

She didn’t know how long she cried. It could have been for a moment or forever. 

Finally her breathing slowed and her muscles relaxed. She raised her face directly into the spray of water and let it wash her skin clean. Experimentally, she licked droplets from around her lips and carefully swallowed. Each little bit of water that stayed down encouraged her to drink more, until she finally opened her mouth and drank her fill.


	3. Things Fall Apart

Nico waited until he heard water running in the shower, before he went into his bedroom. He quietly turned the doorknob and entered the adjoining bath. After gathering his hair dryer and brush, he put them on the vanity along with Dani’s purse that he’d brought with him. Thankfully she was still in the shower and he was able to leave undetected. The last thing she needed right now was to be caught in a vulnerable position by a man. Closing the door behind him he picked up the clothes she had tossed on his bed.

Under the bright light in his laundry room off the kitchen, he carefully examined each seam, strap and closure for damage that Dr. Browning and he might have missed earlier. If he found any, the garments would have to be submitted for DNA testing. He discovered they were as intact as they’d appeared to be the night before and put them in the washer.

His cell vibrated, as he was closing the pocket door between the laundry and kitchen. One look at the caller ID made his stomach dip. Was it business as usual or was he finally coming face to face with the one big mistake of his past? 

“Sir.”

“Tough week, Nico.” Marshall Pittman’s deep voice was clipped and concise. 

“We’ve had better.” Nico leaned against his kitchen counter, wondering what strange power Gabrielle had had that she could have made him contemplate further disloyalty to a man who had once been his commanding officer and had saved his life in combat. He and Marshall were the only surviving members of Seal Team Delta 6. 

“King’s surgeon is keeping me apprised of his progress and Donnelly is already working with the physical therapist. They’ll have Terrance in good shape by next season. It’s a damn shame this had to happen now. What’s your read on the rest of the team? Can we take San Francisco on Sunday afternoon without TK?”

“He’s not the whole team...If they can keep their anger focused in the right direction---”

“My God, Careles, you’re sounding like that damn shrink I hired.” Pittman laughed. He never thought he’d see the day when his tough as nails head of security spouted New Age crap. 

“Dr. Santino has been helpful. She’s spent as much time with the other players as she has with Terrance, since the shooting.” He decided this was as good a time as any to tell his boss about what had happened the night before. “Sir, there’s been another development. Someone put Rohypnol in the doctor’s mineral water, last night.”

“Roofies,” Pittman ground out the street name for the drug used. “What the hell? Was it another hit on the team or was it personal?”

“I don’t know yet. I’ve got Xeno investigating and will join him when I can get her home.”

“Where is she? You didn’t take her to the hospital did you? That would involve the police. The last thing The Hawks need is more bad publicity.” Marshall Pittman thought of his investment first and then finally the woman who had helped a troubled team make it to the play-offs. “How badly was she hurt?” 

Nico clenched his teeth to keep his anger under control. “She’s doing fine. Dani was smart and called me as soon as she began to feel funny. She’s here with me at my place--”

The low rumbling chuckle coming through his cell phone interrupted Careles. “You dark horse, you dark dark horse, somehow I didn’t think a woman like that was your type.” Pittman’s laughter continued. “Hell, I didn’t think you had a type.” It was finally clear why Gabrielle's attorney was talking reconciliation, Nico was banging the therapist. 

“No, Sir, you don’t understand. It isn’t like that. I would never…she is part of the team.” The Hawks’ security man had to stop and think. Was his old friend seeing something that he’d refused to acknowledge for months? Sure he knew he desired her but desires were easily ignored. She was also his to protect. But he refused to take that line of self-exploration any further, even if it did answer a lot of questions; even if it explained why he’d gone to Santino about Gabrielle; why he’d been able to finally see that the restless Mrs. Pittman was using him. Nico shook his head to put a lock on the door of thoughts Marshall had unwittingly opened. Careles was intelligent and had street smarts. He didn’t need a therapist to tell him that using another person wasn’t a definition of love. Or that being asked to go against everything he believed wasn’t something one did to someone they cared about. Only one small doubt lingered: what had caused the painful hit directly to his chest when he’d knocked on Dani’s door and discovered a disheveled Matt Donnelly coming down her stairs.

“Nico, you still with me?” Pittman questioned with a smirk on his face. He’d finally found a vulnerability in his long time friend. Hopefully he’d never need to use it.

“Yes, Sir.” Nico forced himself into the present. “About Dr. D. There are times when we work as a team. You’ve hired me to protect the physical wellbeing of your people and she protects them mentally. In the course of a business day we’ve found that the two overlap. At the moment TK is a prime example. It is necessary for me to be sure he trusts his surroundings, while she has to make him trust what is going on inside of his head.” As Careles said the words he made himself believe them. Finding Donnelly and Santino in a potentially compromising position had simply caught him by surprise. 

“You’re colleagues, sounds good,” Pittman fought to stifle a chuckle. He wasn’t sure if Nico was trying to convince himself or if his man really believed it. Either way it was a load of bullshit. His head of security had the hots for the good doctor. No matter how it played out, it was a piece of knowledge Marshall stored away for the future.

“Yes, when you hired her she became a team asset.” 

“All right then. You need to handle this Roofies incident with your usual discretion, as you would with any other team asset.” 

“I’ll make sure the press doesn’t get wind of it.” Nico ran his hand through his hair. He didn’t add that if it were in Dani’s best interest, the authorities would be brought in. He knew enough people to keep the story contained if that should happen.

Marshall wasn’t quite done. “One other thing…the information you gathered on Gabrielle, are you positive that was all there was to find?”

“Yes, Sir.” Here it comes, Careles thought. Here is when he asks me for the identity of the man his wife had had an affair with. Here is where I get fired or worse.

“Hmmm…it’s something I’ve known about for years.” Pittman was nobody’s fool. It was time to change the game. He’d been aware that Juliette might not be his and had discreetly had a DNA test run not long after her birth. The affair between Gabrielle and Nico had been over long ago but their feelings had lingered. Keeping them apart but forcing them into the occasional social situation had been a just and long lasting punishment, as long as they both remained loyal to him. It was apparent that his old friend retained those loyalties. His wife, on the other hand, would have to be brought back under his control or let go. A divorce would be messy but given the prenuptial agreement she’d signed it wouldn’t be as costly as it could have been if Careles had joined forces with her. Nico had set up his accounts in the Caymans and often handled transactions for him. It was the only time Marshall used his friend’s law degree, except for tasking the man to run his security department on the right side of legal even if it meant skating very close to the line on occasion.

A few minutes later Nico sipped a double espresso and stared at the rain hitting the bank of windows that made up one wall of his loft. He could make out his reflection in the glass if he squinted hard enough. His concept of the world had been turned upside down in the last week. He’d discovered that a woman who he had thought he’d loved and who he’d believed loved him was shallow and manipulative. It was time to let go of something that was nothing more than a memory. The idea that Pittman had known all alone didn’t surprise him much. The man was smart and very little slipped past him. The form of punishment he’d chosen had an elegance that was very much Marshall’s style. Nico and Gabrielle had wronged him and in return he had made them suffer. Now it was time to move on with his life.

The woman who was in his shower was a different matter all together. He knew how to keep her at arms length until this odd passion worked its way out of his system, because she deserved someone decent. Again he refused to take that thought to its obvious conclusion. Instead he examined the precaution that he’d already put in place. He’d called in a favor and made sure Matt Donnelly’s girlfriend was offered a more lucrative position that necessitated her move to San Francisco. Time would tell if it was enough.

Nico had to remain strong for a few more hours, until he could get Dani out of his home. He stared into the dark brew in his cup as if it was the soul he’d lost years ago. He told himself that all he could ever feel for her was desire. An affair with Dr. D. would only hurt her as he had Gabrielle and his ex-wife before her. A man without a soul flew best alone.  
……………….

Dani leaned against the black and white marble top of the large double sink vanity and stared at her reflection in the mirror. She was wearing nothing but a dark blue towel wrapped around her and tucked in above her left breast. Her clean face was blotchy from crying and her eyes were large and red with dark smudges under them. She was tired from the emotional storm that she’d allowed free rein in the shower but it had been necessary.

It was evident Nico had done more than gather her clothes from the bedroom. A hair drier; a round brush with an occasional dark, silver tipped, strand of hair mixed in the bristles; and her purse were sitting beside the unused sink on the left. She wanted to be angry with him for invading her privacy but what was the use? Privacy between the two of them had flown out the window sometime the previous night or maybe it was months earlier. This morning the question was too dangerous to her peace of mind to contemplate.

There was a strange feeling of intimacy created by using his brush and dryer when her hair smelled of his spiced lime shampoo. She’d caught that scent on the pillow she’d been sleeping on and remembered it from waking up with her head on his shoulder as he drove her home from the helicopter ride from Atlantic City. Now it surrounded her and made her feel…safe?

It wasn’t until she was unplugging the dryer that she noticed the bruises on her right upper arm. They looked like finger marks. There were five of them in all. She knew with certainty that they hadn’t been there when she’d dressed to go out and couldn’t remember doing anything that might have caused them. Panic licked at the edges of her mind while she ripped off her towel and carefully examined every inch of her body. But her skin was clear except along the bicep of one arm. She could feel her breathing increase, becoming quick and short, leaning over she flipped her hair over her face and held it crushed against her nose.

“Breathe, just breathe,” she whispered to herself, letting the light fragrance of spiced lime remind her that she wasn’t alone.

Nico’s closet took her by surprise. It was a large square room with built-ins on every wall; there were double hangs with suit jackets and sport coats, another with shirts and a tie rack. A few pairs of shoes were neatly put away on slanted shoe racks that reached higher than her head, leaving most of the racks empty. Everywhere she looked she was impressed with the lack of clutter. Sweaters were folded in glass-covered shelves above a large built-in double-handled dresser.

It was the unexpected sight of two framed photos on the top of the dresser that made her forget about searching the long hanging items for a robe and step closer. One was of a group of eight dirty, exhausted men, mud-smeared and serious. Each of them had weeds and vines hanging off their clothes and hats until they were almost unrecognizable but the large automatic rifles they carried told a story of their own. The second was of three men dressed in camouflage with heavy green and black streaks hiding their skin. Again their hats and shoulders were covered with leaves and long vines. They looked dark, dangerous and very pleased with themselves. Each held a long sleek rifle in the air. The picture practically shouted that they had been victorious. The Seal sniper in the middle was a much younger Nico Careles.

“He looks like he fell out of the pages of a well-armed version of Lord of The Flies,” Dani gasped. “He really is as deadly as he appears.” But even as she said the words she shook her head. “Just because a man has a skill, doesn’t mean he uses it.” She turned her back on the dresser and her invasion of Nico’s privacy, remembering the day he’d came to her office, seeking professional help for himself. 

She’d asked, “Did you kill someone.”

He’d replied, “Recently? No.”

As a therapist she knew that a person’s past had an impact on what he was today but the choices he made directed that impact. She didn’t believe that a deadly Navy Seal was all there was to Nico, no matter how hard he tried to pretend otherwise. 

Looking up, she caught her reflection in a large oval mirror hanging on the back of the closet door and realized she was standing naked surrounded by his black suits, jackets, coats and shirts. She closed her eyes at how pale her skin looked against a dark background of his clothes and personal possessions.

Intimacy brushed against her body as if his sure patient hands were moving over her. It made her shake with desire. “No,” she denied the impact. “It’s the drug in my system.” With careful steady movements she reached for the navy terrycloth robe hanging to her right and slipped into it. As the material settled on her shoulders she refused to acknowledge the tingling in her stomach.

Dani raised her chin and walked carefully out of the closet and into the bathroom. She made one quick stop to hang up her towel and then she kept on moving, until she was safely in his bedroom. She stood and rolled the overlong sleeves that dangled past her fingers, trying to keep her eyes on what she was doing and not let her curiosity get the better of her. There were two tall bookshelves opposite the foot of the bed. A few titles popped out: Book Of Five Rings, The Tao, in two different translations, The Art of War, and The Divine Comedy, were to be expected but she also saw the works of William Blake, numerous leather-bound plays by Shakespeare and a large, well read copy of Fung Shui Your Life. The last item explained a lot about the rooms she’d seen so far and the man she was beginning to know; the lack of clutter in his home and his life, the oval mirror and its placement, the pale blue walls in the bath and bedroom, the large queen size bed with sloping wood head and footboard, and a trailing plant on the sharp corner of the mission style nightstand.  
......................

“I was beginning to think you drowned.” Nico looked up from making more espresso as Dani came out of the bedroom. “Are you doing all right?” Stupid question Careles, he thought. Of course she isn’t all right, she’s still unsure if she was molested last night.

“That’s some bathroom and closet you have there.” She tried to establish a light note, anything so she wouldn’t have to think or talk about herself anymore. “Gotta say I’m impressed.”

She was deflecting. Nico could read it on her face. He decided to let her have the space she needed for a while. Too much had happened in the last week and he had to add more pressure. There were hard questions that needed to be asked. They weren’t going anywhere for at least another six hours, he had time to let her regroup. “Section 27-2066 of the Housing Code of the City of New York requires indoor plumbing. And despite the fact that NYC Building Code doesn’t require a bedroom closet, I gather the former owner was a clothes horse.” He watched her carefully and when she looked confused, explained, “They came with the place, exactly as they are now.”

“Oh,” she nodded unsure where to go from there.

“Dani, did something happen in the shower?”

“No…not really…I…”

“Dr. Santino, you’re a poor liar.” 

“I...discovered some bruises while I was drying my hair.” She wrapped her arms around her body to keep from shivering.

“Dani?” He put both shots of espresso on the top of the machine to keep them warm and was at her side in a few quick strides. “What did you find, Dani?”

“I have fingerprints on my right arm but that’s it, nothing else anywhere.” All the strength she’d been feeling moments earlier slipped away and left her jittery and unsure.

“Show me,” he demanded.

“Why?”

“Because they could be from me and damnit because I need to see them.”

She pulled up the sleeve on her bruised arm but she’d put too much material into the cuffs when she’d rolled them. It would only go as far as her elbow. With a sigh she closed her eyes, flipped the left lapel over until it covered her chest and part of her opposite shoulder and then let the robe slide down her right arm.

“I need to try something.” Nico moved in front of her and wrapped his right arm around her until his hand rested on her bare skin. “You’re all right,” he whispered as he felt her stiffen.

“You...uh...startled me.” She looked up surprised. He was so close that her hair caught in the scruff on his chin. 

“I won’t hurt you.” Looking down he could count the freckles sprinkled across her nose and see that her eyes weren’t red simply from being drugged. She’d been crying and by the looks of it crying hard. “Trust me just a bit longer. I want to see if I caused those bruises.”

“I do trust you, Nico. Don’t you know that by now?” She relaxed against him as he guided her head against his chest and gently held her bruised arm. His fingers and thumb were a perfect match for the marks on her bicep.

“Damn that Danny Martello!” his voice was low and deep and cracked like a rifle shot. “He tried to stop us as we were leaving Solstice. I was keeping you steady like this and had to exert extra pressure so I could cover your face with my other hand. I’m sorry. This is one more thing to make you doubt what happened.” He stepped back and set her free.

“There’s nothing to be sorry for. You got me out of that club and protected my identity while you were doing it. Thank you.” She shivered as he slid the dark terry cloth back over her shoulder and pulled the lapels tightly closed, high around her neck. “Please…I don’t want to talk about last night anymore.”

“We have to. I need to know exactly what happened.” He hated doing this to her. 

“But I don’t remember anything.” She argued.

“I need you to try and you need it too.” 

“You’re right. I know you are.” She studied the buttons on his shirt, her hands clasped in front of her, the dark granite kitchen counter behind Nico with its odd flashes of gray and blue, anything so she wouldn’t have to meet his penetrating gaze. “The doubts are frightening but there is safety in not-knowing for sure.”

“You don’t need to hide in memory loss to feel safe. Your back-up is here now.” He was going to find out the truth for her, so she didn’t have to rely on negative evidence. Somewhere, not very far away, there was a man or men who knew exactly what had happened and he was determined to find them, even if he had to financially destroy Club Solstice to pick up the trail.


	4. The Center Cannot Hold

“I know you need more information but could I have some coffee first? I don’t do well in the morning without caffeine and ahhh...this isn’t exactly an ordinary morning.” Dani knew the only way to get her life back under control was to do as Nico asked. They had to rehash the night before. He would help her dig for memories of what had happened. It wasn’t going to be pleasant but it was necessary. 

“Is your stomach doing better?” He moved back into the kitchen glad for the excuse to give her space. She was hurting and he’d discovered that he liked letting her lean on him. Nico had been around long enough to know that comfort like that was deceptive. It enhanced and skewed feelings and left pain and confusion in its wake. He would do what he had to keep her going but nothing more. Dani was still wide-eyed and shaken, looking for any port in a storm. He couldn’t be that port, because he was only an illusion. He would concentrate on protecting her physically; do his job and nothing more. Then when she left maybe he could pretend that even pale from fear and red-eyed from crying Dani Santino wasn’t the most desirable woman he’d ever met. 

“Food would be pushing my luck but I can handle coffee.” Her lips curved upward but she couldn’t make the rest of her face smile. She knew she wasn’t fooling anyone, least of all the very astute Mr. Careles.

“If you can keep this down you earn yourself a latte.” He reached across the breakfast bar with a glass of water in hand. “I don’t want you getting dehydrated.”

“It’s a deal.” She nodded and ignored his questioning expression. They both knew he wasn’t bargaining. If she wanted coffee, she had to drink the water, so she took a tiny sip despite having quenched her thirst in the shower half an hour earlier. When it stayed down without making her insides tumble, she finished the glass. “I think the problem before was uh…panic. I knew something was wrong but couldn’t put the pieces together until you told me about the Rohypnol...”

He leaned on the granite breakfast bar that separated them and examined her carefully. The dark smudges under her eyes were his undoing. He never gave excuses or explained his actions but this time he couldn’t help himself. “I had to tell you…” He slid his hand toward her, close but not touching. “If there had been any way…” He wished that he could carry the knowledge for her, so she could remain untouched by his world populated by darkness and shadows but it was far too late for that.

“It’s okay, Nico…” her voice broke unable to go on. “Well…it isn’t okay but…” She shook her head and instinctively, reached for his hand, squeezing it to emphasize her words. “Knowing the truth, from the beginning, will help me get to the end of this.”

“Right now I can help you again, by making coffee,” he whispered as he pulled his hand out from under her smaller one.

“Oh, yeah, sure, sorry.” Dani’s lips tightened and she shivered slightly as her fingers brushed against cold granite, where before they had been touching warm skin. “Uh…ya know if the security business doesn’t work out for you, Mr. Careles, I think you have a future as a barista.” She watched his sure steady movements as he ground coffee and filled the portafilter to his espresso machine.

“I’ll keep that in mind, Dr. Santino.”

Dani turned away feeling hollow and alone, convinced the drug was still playing tricks with her mind. This was Nico, what was she doing? 

Her eyes drifted over the lovely uncluttered rectangle that made up the main part of his loft. If she hadn’t seen the book on Feng Shui in his bedroom, she wouldn’t believe he lived here, despite his clothes hanging in the closet. It would be too out of character for the Nico Careles she knew. But she had seen the book and with it came understanding. 

The aged oak hardwood floor was covered with two large Oriental rugs. The one in the living room was deep red and cream, highlighted in blue. She squinted until she knocked loose the memory of what the colors stood for. Red was passion, courage and power; white was honesty, faith and grace; and blue was serenity, calm and compassion. The rug in the dining room was blue and cream, highlighted in pale red. It set the scene for a tranquil meal with stimulating honest conversation, though she had trouble picturing the tough head of security entertaining…and when she did, it was a image she found distasteful. The idea of Nico and the lovely Mrs. Pittman laughing quietly over an intimate late night dinner turned Dani’s stomach. To help wipe it from her mind she examined the living area.

A black leather sofa created the illusion of two rooms instead of one. That piece of furniture practically shouted Nico’s name. Black was strength, protection, intelligence and shrewdness. 

Like the dining room, most of his furniture was cherry in early Arts and Crafts design, while his art was antique Chinese. It made an interesting and unusual combination. The clean lines and beautiful wood of the Mission style pieces made a striking backdrop for a few intricate designs in jade and two silk wall hangings

Dani looked over her shoulder into the kitchen where he was working. Nico moved with economical grace, surrounded by black granite, shot with blues and grays. Behind him there were tall cupboards, a large range, oven and refrigerator on the wall that backed up to the bedroom; in front, all she could see over the breakfast bar was an almost professional looking espresso machine and a high arching neck of the faucet above the double sink. 

“Dani?” He caught her staring and wondered what had her so entranced.

“I…uh…can’t believe all that glass.” She turned quickly and pointed to one long wall of the loft. A gray rainy morning began to lighten as the sun rose somewhere behind dark angry storm clouds. The glass blocks along one side of the bathroom made sense when she realized the glass started in the living room, continued on past the kitchen into the bedroom and bathroom. It reached to the pressed tin ceiling two stories above and ran to the floor. 

“Those windows are what sold me on the place. They’re insulated and filter. No one can see in but we can see out.” He wanted to tell her that he’d had bulletproof glass used for the second layer of panes but decided that even Dr. Browning would think that was taking the truth too far. All the work had been done before he’d moved in years earlier. He didn’t regret it. The expense had given him peace of mind when he’d needed it badly. It had been shortly after he’d started with Pittman and even three years of law school hadn’t been able to completely eradicate the moments of paranoia that had haunted him in the time after The Seals. He supposed Dr. Santino would have said he’d had PTSD but it was long ago and the diagnosis was irrelevant to who he was today.

“Let’s take these into the living room.” He held a latte in each hand and nodded for her to go ahead of him. 

“Rain pounding on glass is one of my favorite sounds. It’s soothing.” Dani curled her legs under her in the corner of the sofa and leaned back on a square pillow covered in deep red silk. She was relieved when Nico sat down beside her and never wondered why.

“Not exactly what you were expecting?” His eyebrow rose in curiosity. 

“I wasn’t expecting anything.” She shrugged. Sure, she’d wondered where he lived but this tranquil relaxing loft didn’t mesh with the tough cold exterior he presented to the world or it wouldn’t have this time yesterday. “I was curious, and if I’d had to guess it would have been more Bat Cave than The Fortress of Solitude.”

“That’s superhero stuff.” He frowned, recognizing her references to Batman’s famed hideaway below Wayne Manor in Gotham City and Superman’s lonely stronghold in the barren north. “I’m no one’s idea of a hero.”

“Last night you were mine,” her voice cracked and her eyes began to swim again. She reached out a tentative hand and touched his arm.

“If I’d been doing my job, none of that would have happened.” He’d known that she was an important team asset. After Terrance King was shot following the first play-off game, he should have been more vigilant. He told himself that his guilt had nothing to do with the fact that she fascinated him as no woman had since the early months with Gabrielle or that he found her mind and ethics as sexy as hell. Dr. Dani Santino was a small package of emotional dynamite that could easily blow his calm, cool, façade into a million pieces. “I should have taken better care of you.”

“That’s just plain ridiculous. You’re only human for crying out loud.” She felt temper breaking through the lassitude that had been her constant companion since waking to a pounding head and devastating news.

“How can I be human if I’m a superhero living in the Fortress of Solitude?”

“Shut up, Careles! If I want to thank you, I will. If I want to call you a hero, I’ll do that too and you’re just going to have to live with it. After last night…and…uh…this morning…” her words stumbled and broke. She looked at him with sad dark eyes and had to take a deep breath before she could go on. “It would have been terrible to wake up at home, with no memory of what happened or worse yet on some gurney in an emergency room. Nico, you’re an extremely private man. Do you think I don’t know how difficult it must have been for you to bring me here, into your home?”

“But that’s just it, Dani, it wasn’t difficult at all. I brought you here because this was the safest place I could think of.” He put his arm along the back of the couch careful not to touch her but kept it close enough to feel her presence.

“And you say you’re not a hero?” She looked up at him out of the corner of her eyes as she sipped her latte.

“We’ll see what you think when we’re done with this.” He picked up the iPad on his coffee table and began what he knew would feel like an interrogation to her. He was back in guard duty mode and nothing was going to keep him from finding out what he needed to know. “I want you to walk me through last night. I need to hear everything, no matter how inconsequential it may seem. But first, who are you seeing beside Matt Donnelly and have you turned anyone down recently?” 

“You make me sound...” she gasped. She hated the cold tone in his voice and the sordid implication that there was a parade of men in and out of her life. It hit too close to the way she felt recently to be comfortable. “What does who I date have to do with last night?”

“That’s what I’m trying to find out. You can either tell me or the police.” 

“You’re the man with all the answers.” She crossed her arms over her chest and her chin rose in challenge, doing her best to take control of the situation but it was hard to feel in charge when she was curled up on his sofa in nothing but his robe. “I can’t believe you don’t already know.”

“Humor me. I’ve been a little bit busy this week, Dr. Santino.” His lips tightened, he was glad to see her display a small amount of her usual scrappy personality and hated that he was going to have to crush it. “It’s your choice, me or…” he shrugged and picked up his cell.

“Hold it, I can’t believe that Marshall Pittman wants this getting out anymore than I do.” She challenged.

“You’re right, he has his concerns but, if you won’t answer my questions, going to the authorities is the lesser of two evils.” Nico’s face was grim and hard, showing no trace of how difficult it was to press her like this. He didn’t like having to use emotional blackmail when she was still so fragile but he needed answers, if he was going to find out who had tried to hurt her. “We’d all rather this didn’t come out, especially now, in the middle of playoffs--”

“Well that’s big of you, Mr. Careles. God forbid I’d upset the playoffs,” she huffed. “And you can tell Pittman to stuff---”

“Stop interrupting and hear me out,” his sharp words sliced through her rising temper like a knife. “The entire Hawks Organization likes and respects you. Since Terrance was shot, I’ve watched you calm their fears and help them work through anger. More importantly you are part of the team and as such, need to be kept safe. People have to get the message that anyone; anyone at all, involved with The Hawks is off-limits. It doesn’t matter if that person is a player, wife, girlfriend or a part-time janitor. It has to be known that there are consequences.” He began to punch numbers into his cell.

“Wait, stop, you win.” She grabbed his wrist and grappled for his phone. All of her fight collapsed, leaving her cold and unsure of herself. “I’ll answer your questions.” Her mother had always taught her not to bluff unless she could live with the outcome if someone called her on it. Dani should have known better. Nico didn’t bluff and he never gave in. 

“All right.” He put his cell on the coffee table. “Okay then, who besides Donnelly and who have you turned down recently.”

“I…uh…I’m not seeing anyone, not anymore and the only person I’ve turned down lately is Matt.”

“Why didn’t you want to tell me?” Nico wasn’t sure which surprised him more, that Dani wasn’t with Donnelly or that she’d feel the need to keep it from him. “Were you trying to protect him?” 

“No! No! If I thought for one moment he would do something like that to me or anyone, I’d kick his ass and then hand him over to you to do…whatever it is you do." She fought guilt and embarrassment as she tried to explain. “He wouldn’t…he isn’t the type…He wasn’t pleased when you interrupted us but for one very small second I was relieved and then you told us Terrance had been shot.”

“You felt guilty.” He could read it on her face and hear it in her voice. That was why she had been reticent about answering his question.

“Partly.” She looked up at him needing to say it all. “When we sat through that interminable night, waiting for word on Terrance, it put things in perspective. I realized that if I could be relieved that Matt and I didn’t…well you know…”

“Yeah, I do,” he whispered.

“I had been about to make another stupid mistake, in a long in of stupid mistakes.” She leaned her head on her hand with her elbow on the back of the couch inches from Nico’s arm. “Throwing Ray out was the last sane thing I did where men are concerned. 

“In that waiting area, I decided, no more trying to make something out of nothing, no more singles’ parties or trying to give substance to an old crush that was nothing more than eye candy in a class room. Most importantly, I realized that a one-night-stand is just that, one night. It’s not an area where I…uh…have a lot of experience and it messed up my head. I can’t think of any other reason I’d pursue a relationship that was scary---”

“You’re afraid of Matt Donnelly?” he hissed and grasped her shoulders, pulling her closer. “That’s information I should have had weeks ago.”

“No—no, you don’t get it.” Her hands rested instinctively on his chest. “I’m not afraid of him.” Dani’s eyes darted from his face, to his shoulders and finally to her palms pressing lightly against his white button-down. Embarrassed, she curled her fingers into fists and inched away from the contact she knew he avoided. “It’s not the man who frightens me but involvement with him.”

“You’re sure?”

Dani’s chin rose so she looked him full in the face. “Matt and I hopped into bed, knowing little more than the other’s first name. I kept thinking it had to mean something, when it was simply that I was lonely.” She could feel her face flush but saw only compassion coming from the depths of his dark eyes. “I’m not sure why I’m telling you all this.” 

“Maybe you needed to say it and I happened to be here.” His words whispered along her skin and made her feel dizzy with longing, as his hands slipped down her arms and away. He’d been seconds away from pulling her into an embrace that would be disastrous for both of them.

“Yeah…and…well… then I decided to take a page from your book while I was learning how to be a single adult.” Dani forced a smile and tried not to think how cold she felt since he wasn’t touching her anymore. 

“My book?” He frowned, unsure what she meant.

“Ya know, some birds are meant to fly solo.” As she said it, she was struck with the realization that it wasn’t true about him. She’d seen the pictures in his closet. They weren’t of a man who flew best solo. Caught on film for all to see was a team player, a man who had been a member of a group, an elite group that had trusted each other with their lives. Why she’d ever doubted it she didn’t know. Nowadays he was a unique player for The Hawks and it didn’t matter that he never touched a football or that black was his team color.

No wonder he’d been in such conflict when he’d come to her for help. He’d been caught between a woman he loved and an old comrade who had his undying dedication. Dani realized loyalty to Marshall Pittman was why Nico flew alone, such an admirable quality but such a waste of a good man.

“Dani, is that why you were in that club all by yourself last night?” His half-truth had come back to haunt him. The bird who was happiest flying sole had been is ex-wife. It had been a bitter lesson. As he’d told Dani when she’d been on her date with JD, his ex had been a Jackass. It wasn’t that she cheated on him, her Navy career had been too important to her for that. Early on she’d set her sights on an important spot in the Pentagon. There had been no room in her life for a shell-shocked Seal, who had been one of only two men to survive an incursion. “Were you trying to explore this newfound, belief?”

“No, not really. I was there to meet my friend Margo. I didn’t know she wasn’t coming until after I was inside Solstice. Despite evidence to the contrary, I know a woman is more likely to have problems if she goes to clubs and bars alone.”

“Good, then I don’t have to worry about a repeat performance.” He stated. It helped stomp out the need to tell Dani the complete truth about his divorce and to get him back to the job of investigating what had happened to her. “Start from the time you parked your car at the club. I want to hear everything you remember.”

“Okay,” she sighed. This Nico she knew how to deal with. He was the man from late nights in cars and visits at odd hours. He was all business. He didn’t make her knees shake or her skin tingle, except when they brushed against one another.


	5. Turning, Turning, Turning

After an hour of intense questioning, Dani was blurry eyed and exhausted from digging for information that kept slipping away from her, before her thoughts were fully formed. “I’m sorry it’s like trying to make sense out of a jigsaw puzzle made of fog.” She rubbed her temples with her fingers hoping to shake something else loose.

“It’s okay. You’re doing great. Memory loss is one of the reasons date rape drugs are so effective.” Nico wasn’t much further along than he’d been when they had started. He looked down at the careful notes on his iPad and tried to fill in some of the blanks from the night before. 

…Danny Martello had been on the door when she’d arrived. It was apparent he’d recognized her, because he’d allowed her access ahead of the line.   
…Dani had a vague recollection of seeing him again at the bar. But Martello was a club owner who worked hands-on, just because he’d been around that night didn’t mean he was involved. But it did put the man at the top of Nico’s list of people of interest and therefore the man Careles planned to speak with first.  
…Santino couldn’t remember if she’d left her drink unattended but thought she might have turned away from it to check her messages when she realized Margo was late.

“I don’t understand how this happened,” she murmured. “I didn’t talk to anyone except the bartender and that was when he took my order. No one tried to pick me up or even tried to start a conversation.”

“We can only trust your memory up until you took the first swallow of your Pellegrino, after that…” Nico shrugged and fought the desire to keep pushing for answers.

“I understand that,” she glared at him. “But I also know me. I’m careful when I go out. Risks are far greater for a woman who goes to a club alone. I don’t take chances. The only reason I was there by myself was because I didn’t check my text messages until after I was inside the club.”

“I’m not accusing you of anything.” He took a moment to rein in his temper. The research he’d done the night before had caused him to burn with rage but that wasn’t what Dani needed right now. She needed him to be calm and in control. “Last night was a result of one of two things. You were either at the wrong place at the wrong time, or it was a personal attack. We need to figure out which it was.”

“Well yeah, it was personal. Someone put a date rape drug in my drink, I’d hardly call that an accident.” She shivered, filled with doubt. Was this the same man who’d taken such good care of her, who had listened with compassion and understanding when she had spoken of how her life had spun out of control after she’d tossed Ray out? She should have known better. He was an iceman who never let anything stand in the way of getting his job done.

“Of course it was personal to you but was it to him. Was he trying to get his hands on you, Dani Santino or was it opportunistic?” Nico was getting a very bad feeling about this. 

“Does it matter?” She wanted the person caught but was terrified to go to the police. If it became public knowledge, it would give Ray leverage if he wanted to reopen the custody battle.

“Yes, it does, finding the motive, can lead to the perpetrator.”

“All right,” Dani sighed, knowing he was right. “Let me think a minute.” She took the last swallow of her, now cold, latte and closed her eyes, trying to distance herself from the issue. “A sexual predator who would use Solstice as his hunting ground would be targeting girls who are looking to score a celebrity for the night. Our guys hang out there and TK told me that some of the Yankees and Nicks do too.”

“It’s also a popular place with the younger Broadway crowd,” Nico added. 

“If we’re looking for a sexual predator,” her voice shook and she took a deep breath. “He lacks confidence. His low self-esteem probably causes feelings of rejection, inadequacy, and anger toward women in general, more specifically women in his target group. It would explain why he felt it was necessary to use drugs to take control. Rape is about control and anger, not sex. But it doesn’t explain why he chose me. I don’t fit the pattern. Someone who would be hunting in a club like Solstice wouldn’t choose me.”

 

“That is assuming there is a pattern.” Nico wondered if she realized how attractive she was, if she understood the dichotomy of her confident personality that flashed of hidden passion and the innocent expression that often filled her eyes. It was a combination that almost any male would find exciting. He suspected it was what had attracted Matt Donnelly to her and he’d recognized the same gleam of challenge in J.D Aldridge’s eyes. But unlike Donnelly, Nico hadn’t been sure that Aldridge was harmless. Some men who were attracted to strong women wanted nothing more than to strike out and destroy. To that kind of man, Santino would be catnip of a different kind.

“What are you getting at?” She nudged him, aware of his intense gaze. 

“There’s something I don’t understand.” He assessed her carefully. She was doing better but did she really need to hear what he was beginning to suspect? “Why didn’t he follow you into the ladies’ room, lock the door, and finish what he started?”

"Because I was extremely lucky," she whispered.

“Possibly.” Nico shrugged.

“But you don’t think that’s it?” Dani’s voice quavered. “You know something that you aren’t telling me?”

“I don’t know anything for sure but I can’t help wonder…”

“What! What do you suspect? Tell me, God damnit.” She gripped his arm and shook it.

“I’m concerned that last night was an extension of what happened to TK, that someone was going after a member of The Hawks.” 

“Oh God….” Her eyes widened, unable to believe that anyone would find her that much of a threat but relieved, as well. It made what happened less frightening. “I’d like to believe that. It feels safer somehow…but it doesn’t make sense, maybe if Terrance were still playing…but he’s not.”

“I’m trying to cover all the possibilities.” Nico needed to get more answers before he frightened her any more than he already had. He wanted to get his hands on any video surveillance that had been taken last night. Most clubs of Solstice’s standing were careful with their security. Somewhere there had to be pictures of what had happened. 

“So this speculation is simply you being your usual careful self?” Something icy clutched at her throat. Nico knew more than he was telling her. “I’m not buying it. What do you know?” She was sure she wasn’t going to like the answer. That made it all the more necessary.

“It’s only a supposition,” he sighed and met her gaze. “One question first. Was there anyone else in that club from the team?”

“Not that I saw but I was there for such a short time.” 

“I didn’t see anyone, either, but my attention was only on our immediate surroundings.” Nico pursed his lips and frowned as he weighed his options. “I’ve been wondering, ever since Margaret identified the drug that was used on you, why Rohypnol? It’s illegal in the States. Most of it that is in the clubs nowadays is imported from Mexico where it is used as a sleep aid. The drug companies are well aware that it can be instrumental in date rape and have coated it, so that whatever liquid it is dissolved in turns blue. You were drinking mineral water. It took a lab test to tell that it had been tampered with. Someone went to a lot of trouble to procure something very special. If a man was that intent on rape it would be simpler, easier and more cost effective to use GHB--”

“Ohhh,” color drained from her face and her ears buzzed. Again she was caught in the trap of what could have happened. “You’re right…Gamma-Hydroxybutyerate …it’s…it’s…called Liquid X on the street…” It looped through her mind and would not settle. She couldn’t grasp it and gain control.

“That’s correct.” Once again he’d reduced her to shattered pieces and it was painful to watch her struggle. “It works much faster and plays hell with a person’s inhibitions. But Dani.” He cupped her shoulders. “He didn’t use it. All you did last night was call me. You were safe.”

“You’re sure? I didn’t…I wasn’t…” The picture she was getting was as enticing as it was embarrassing. Of course she’d called Nico for help, over the last months her feelings for the man had grown. Unlike Matt who had hit her with a blast of chemistry, the silent head of security had become her friend. During the weeks and months they’d worked together, she’d grown to care about him. Dani couldn’t remember when she first became aware that she desired him but it was more than that, deeper, stronger and forbidden because he was in love with another woman.

“Dani, where’d you go?” He tilted her face upward and gazed into her eyes, it was apparent her mind was far away.

“Just…” she shrugged unable to tell him. “Did I act inappropriately, last night?”

“No,” he whispered softly. 

“Okay it’s that…I…I can’t remember.” She curled her fingers around his wrists to keep him from pulling away. Right now she needed his touch like she needed air. “How long does it take before I’m me again, before I’m strong and brave again, despite the doubts?” She reached out blindly for him and touched the scruff on his left check with fingers that shook. “You know these things, Nico. I’m not asking how or where you were forced to lean them…But. You. Know. How long does it take to get back to normal?”

“I can’t tell you.” He pulled her close and buried his nose in her hair, as he held her tightly. “I wish I could but it’s different for everybody.” 

“I’m a professional. I know everyone handles trauma in his or her own way,” she mumbled against his neck. “I shouldn’t have asked. I’m sorry.” She tried to pull free but he wouldn’t let her go.

“Dani,” he whispered her name and ran his right hand lightly against her cheek. They were inches apart and he couldn’t take his eyes off her lips. “It will get better. I promise, I’ll do everything in my power to get you the answers you need.”

“I know and I didn’t mean to intruded on your private life.” She could see it in his eyes, painful secrets that were usually buried and kept neatly under control.

“You didn’t.” He smiled carefully and, as if by silent agreement, they both pulled back into their own space, close but no longer touching. 

Nico’s phone vibrated on the coffee table. Like he’d done twice before, he checked it but this time, when he saw that it was Juliette Pittman calling he knew he couldn’t ignore it. “Dani, I need to take this call.” He nodded toward the phone. “Your clothes should be dry.” 

“Uh…sure…the laundry room is off the kitchen?” She was up and moving even as she asked the question. She’d seen him go in there when the washer had buzzed shortly after they’d begun talking. 

“Yes, I’m going to take this in my office.” Nico headed for tight spiral stairs on the far side of the couch and climbed them to the small alcove above. “Hello,” he answered his phone.

“Hi, yourself. You let your phone ring so long I was beginning to think you didn’t want to speak to me.” Juliette laughed into her phone.

“Just a second, Kiddo.” His thought process was split as he saw the woman below enter his bedroom. He called over the waist high wall, looking directly down at the entire room below. “Dani, you should change in the bathroom.”

“Oh…uh thanks. I didn’t realize.” Santino looked up at his serious face from the small loft within a larger one. It was the first time she was aware of the room that had a commanding view of the entire condo with the exception of the bathroom and closet. It was directly over that part of the master suite.

Once he heard the door close below he turned his attention to the nineteen year-old on the phone. “How are you doing?” He sat in his office chair and leaned back.

“Do you have a girl at that sexy bachelor pad of yours, Uncle Nico?” Juliette gasped and giggled, addressing him, as she hadn’t since she’d been fifteen. “You’ve finally decided to give up being alone.”

“I would hardly call my home sexy and even if it were, I’m too old for girls.” He was so happy to hear her chattering at him like she used to when she was a kid, that he was willing to play along for a bit.

“All right then, I’ll rephrase counselor. Are you with a woman?”

“I’m working, Juliette, so stop being so nosy.” He hoped that would keep her from asking more questions. She was one of only two people he cared enough about to want her to think well of him. The other person was changing her clothes in his bathroom.

“Uhhh you’re no fun, Uncle Nico.” Juliette knew she wasn’t going to get any more information out of the man she had always wished was her father instead of Marshall Pittman.

“Yeah, that’s me, dull, boring, old Nico Careles.” He could practically hear her rolling her eyes at him. “You didn’t answer my question. How are you doing?” 

“Better, much better.” The young girl took a deep breath and grabbed her courage with both hands. She’d teased him not simply because she cared about him and didn’t want him alone, but because she’d needed time to think how to ask for the help she needed. “I called for a couple of reasons. First to thank you for making me see how screwed up my life had become and…uh…to apologize for all the trouble I’ve caused you. The apology is one of the twelve steps but when I say I’m sorry to you, I mean it from the bottom of my heart. It was selfish to ask for your help when Daddy had forbidden it. Please, forgive me?”

“You have made progress.” His smile. “But don’t worry about your father. My working relationship with him is my business. I’m happy to hear that you’re doing better. How much longer does your program last?”

“Mama is picking me up on Wednesday,” her voice shook slightly. “That’s something else I wanted to talk to you about. I’m afraid, Nico. Getting clean was hard but out there in the real world, I’m not sure I can stay that way, being a party girl was so much of who I was, I don’t know if going to meetings will be enough.”

“Have you talked to your parents about this?” He looked down and saw Dani come out of the bathroom.

“No, they’re hardly speaking to each other. I didn’t want to give them one more thing to fight about.”

“Juliette, you’re their daughter and they love you. You talk to your mom. I may know someone who can help. Let me see what I can do.”

“Thank you, Uncle Nico,” she sniffed, refusing to cry.

“You’re welcome, Kiddo.” Nico’s eyes fluttered closed. Juliette may not be his biological child but that didn’t stop him from loving her as if she were. Gabrielle had led him to believe she was his up until just recently. That piece of knowledge couldn’t wipe out almost two decades of caring. “Is there anything else I can do for you?”

“No, the rest I have to do on my own. Just take care of yourself.” She wanted to add that he should take care of the woman in his apartment because if gruff Nico Careles had let her into his home for any reason, he had to care about her as more than business.

“You too.” The smile that Juliette’s call had put on his face faded as he ended the call to her and punched in Xeno’s number.

On the main floor, Dani could hear the muffled cadence of Nico’s voice and was glad she couldn’t hear what was being discussed. She moved to the window and was surprised to see the storm had slackened enough for her to see Bleecker Street four stories below. On the corner, across the street was a large sign over the door of the restaurant Le Taj. No wonder she’d run into him when JD had taken her there, it was less than fifty yards from his building. It really was his Tuesday night place.  
................

“Dani, how about some crackers or dry toast?” Nico walked quietly up beside her.

“No…I’m not quite ready to test the boundaries of my stomach yet. I promise when I get home I’ll eat something.”

“You’re sure?” He pushed.

“Yeah, I’ve had enough public vomiting for one day.” Her nose wrinkled in displeasure. “You go ahead and eat the smell won’t bother me.”

“No, I’ve got to change clothes and get to work.” Nico headed toward the bedroom and turned at the door to finish talking to her. “I’m going to have Xeno take you home in your car. I’ll pick him up later tonight. I want him to go over the security system at your house and upgrade if needed. It’s one of his specialties.”

“There’s nothing wrong with the one I’ve got.” She glared.

“You live there alone with two children.” Nico didn’t brush her opinion aside and do what he thought best, as was his usual. Dani had been through too much in the last week. He knew it was important to give her a feeling of control over something in her life. “Please, humor me.”

“I..uh…you’re right. If this was a hit at the team, I need to take every precaution.” Her eyes filled with tears, and she turned away from him. “Thank you, Nico,” it came out rough and quiet.

“I want you and your family to be protected.” He came up behind her but didn’t touch her. “It has nothing to do with The Hawks.”

She caught a slight whiff of spicy lime that reminded her of late dark nights and safety. “I know,” she whispered and rested her forehead against the window. Thoreau’s quote slipped through her mind reminding her of Nico and how he made her feel. ‘That three-o’clock-in-the-morning courage Bonaparte thought was the rarest’. “Thank you.” 

One moment he was standing inches away and the next she heard the bedroom door close. 

Ten minutes later he came out cell phone in hand. “Xeno is waiting for us in the garage.” 

“Okay.” Santino stood at the door to the hall and looked back around the condo, with longing. As much as she wanted to get home and hide, it had felt secure here.

“Dani?” Nico watched emotions flash across her face and reached for her hand. 

“I’m all right, now.” She forced a smile and looked up to meet his eyes. This was almost the Nico Careles she was used to seeing. He was wearing a gray button-down with jeans and an impeccably cut dark charcoal sport coat that she’d bet was cashmere. Nico always dressed well, but the jacket looked out of place. She shook off the odd thought, as he picked up his sunglasses and stuck them in the inside pocket, grabbing his overcoat. “Yeah, I’m okay,” she muttered.

“No, you’re not.” He absent-mindedly brushed her hair away from her face. “But you will be.”

“Wait, I need to tell you something.” He was very close, tall, and straight, and she had to force herself to meet his eyes. “I’ve seen how you live. The things you keep around you. The things that are important to you and the extreme care you’ve taken in creating this place.” She leaned against the closed door, wanting to let him know his secrets were safe with her. “I won’t tell anyone what I’ve seen.”

Nico smiled softly and stepped out of her personal space, once again establishing that he was the Head of Security and she was the Team Therapist. “It wouldn’t matter Dr. Santino. No one would believe the Fortress of Solitude over the Bat Cave, anyway.” 

He nodded for her to step aside and opened the door to the hall. Just like that, in the blink of an eye, Superman disappeared and in his place stood a dark, hard man who never let anything or anyone in.


	6. Shadow Boxing

Nico leaned against his Lincoln, tapping a file folder against his thigh. His eyes were trained on Dr. Santino’s car as Xeno negotiated the right turn onto Bleecker Street and it disappeared from view. He was left alone in the garage under his building with a list of errands to attend to as he stared at the rain dancing on passing traffic.

For once he wished he wasn’t so observant. He hadn’t missed the flash of fear that Dan—Dr. Santino, he corrected himself, had tried to hide when he’d said good-bye and helped her into her car with his associate behind the wheel. He hadn’t missed the tightening of her fingers on his sleeve before she forced herself to let go and fasten the safety belt. It had taken all of Careles’ self control to keep from covering her hand with his and assuring her that she was safe.

Nico shook his head in wonder. Xeno had at least fifty pounds on him and looked ten times as dangerous, but he knew the doctor would have felt better if he was taking her home and Xeno was following-up leads from last night.

A horn honked in the distance and brought Nico’s thoughts back to the almost deserted parking area. He read through the quickly compiled document in the folder Xeno had brought him. It contained Daniel Joseph Martello’s financial report. Tony, another of Careles’ men was working on retrieving an in-depth report along with copies of Martello’s bank statements and a complete balance sheet on Club Solstice. From the information that had been obtained in the short time they’d had, it was apparent the club owner was overextended, though the source of the money drain wasn’t readily apparent. 

Nico took one last speculative look at the folder before locking it in his trunk.

“Damn,” he muttered. He couldn’t get the broken frightened look in Dani’s eyes out of his mind. It was so different from her usual spark of joy, challenge, or determination. He’d already assigned round the clock protection on her house, and Xeno was going to look into her security system. She and her children were safe, but he knew she didn’t feel that way. 

Nico pursed his lips and played with his phone. He had an idea that would make her feel better, but it had nothing to do with protection. A quick look at his watch told him it was twelve forty-five in the afternoon. That would mean it was six forty-five in the evening in Barcelona, Spain. He searched his contacts until he found the number he needed.

“Bueno,” a jaunty feminine voice answered in breathless Spanish.

“Ms. Fiero, I am Nico. I work with your friend Dr. Santino.”

“I know about you,” Jeanette purred. “You’re the security guy for the Hawks.”

“More or less.” Nico knew he’d never met Dani’s friend, but he’d seen her from a distance at a the Hawks charity event and once or twice when she’d left the Santino residence. He tucked away the information for later that she knew about him. It appeared the good doctor had been discussing him with her friend. The thought would have piqued his curiosity if the reason for his call were less serious.

“What can I do for you Mr. More-or-Less-Security-Guy?” The blonde giggled.

“We’ve had a…situation.” 

“I know, I read about TK getting shot. It’s awful. Is he all right?” Jeanette had tried to call her friend when she’d read about the shooting, but they’d been playing phone tag for three days. 

“Ms. Fiero--”

“Call me Jeanette, after all you’re a friend of Dani’s,” she cut in.

“Ms. Fiero,” his voice was smooth and all business. “This isn’t about Terence. Last night someone drugged Dr. Santino. The intent was…is…questionable.”

“Oh-my-God, what happened? Is she all right? Let me talk to her. Put her on the phone this instant!” she insisted. Nico let the blonde’s emotions rush at him until her voice broke with a sob.

“Ms. Fiero, Dani is safe. She’s upset, but she was smart, and I was her first phone call.”

“Thank goodness,” Jeanette sniffled and wiped her nose. “She says you’re good like that,” the blonde added through tears.

“Pardon?” Careles frowned unsure what she meant.

“Dani said you make sure everyone is safe. Thank you for taking care of her, too. I felt bad leaving her alone with that ratfink Ray giving her trouble about the divorce and all. Now that I know she’s got someone to watch over her, I won’t worry so much.”

“Dr. Santino is a valuable member of the Hawks organization it would be remiss of me to exclude her…”

“Of course she is.” Jeanette rolled her eyes at the man. Always the romantic, she was convinced that Mr. Mysterious wouldn’t have made a phone call like this for just anybody. “Do you think it would help if I came for a visit?”

“That’s why I called. I believe the doctor would appreciate it.” He remembered Dani’s voice on the phone when she’d called from the club. Even drugged and confused she’d talked about Jeanette and been disappointed that the blonde wasn’t the one she was supposed to meet. “I’ll get someone working on flight arrangements for you. Will the day after tomorrow be too soon or do you need more time to clear your schedule?”

“For her, I’d take the redeye tonight.” She insisted.

“There isn’t one. Forty-eight hours should be fine.” Nico wanted to be sure all his new security measures were in place before bringing another person into the Santino house, even if that person was a known and trusted quantity by the family. “The Hawks’ travel coordinator will email your itinerary. The trip will be taken care of by the team. I’ll have someone meet you at the airport.”

“Dani can do it.” She was already planning a number of therapeutic shopping trips for her friend.

“It might be better if you surprised her.” 

“You’re right,” she admitted thoughtfully. “Dani is so independent she wouldn’t want to bother me, no matter how much she needed me.” ‘Well hot damn,’ Jeanette thought. ‘Girlfriend finally has a guy who understands her. Wonder if he is as attractive as he sounds.’ “I’m looking forward to meeting you.” She added quickly.

“Good-bye, Ms. Fiero.”

“Good--” Jeanette didn’t get to finish before she realized there was no one listening. Careles had hung up on her.

It wasn’t until twenty minutes later when she was telling Augusto, in halting Spanish, what had happened and Nico was parking his car outside of Solstice that Jeanette wondered how the security man had gotten her cell number and email address. She doubted he’d asked Dani for it, if he was trying to surprise her.  
……..

“Your man said you’d be by today. ” Martello yawned as Nico walked into the club’s office. “What’s this all about?” Casual, helpful, but curious was the tone Danny was striving for. Careles had the reputation of a shark and looking into hazel eyes that gave nothing away, it appeared to be well deserved.

“I want to see your security tapes from 10:30 PM last night until the time I left.” Nico wasn’t going to waste time with small talk. 

“Ya gotta be kiddin’ me?” Danny glared. He’d been careful to avoid any of his cameras but he wasn’t taking any chances. “Ya got a court order?”

“You own a club that the Hawks frequent. If I had reason to suspect the players or their guests weren’t safe, it would have to be addressed.” Nico shrugged casually.

“Is that a threat, Careles?” 

“It’s a concern. You’re a man who has a financial interest in keeping the New York Hawks management happy. Solstice is known as a favorite of local sports celebrates, that in turn brings in other customers…” Nico’s head tilted slightly to the side and he stared as the club owner began to squirm. Danny could read between the lines, cooperate or Solstice was off limits to the team and God only knew how many other headliners. Marshall Pittman had a long reach.

“Showing ya the tapes violates my patrons’ privacy.” Martello stonewalled for as long as he could.

Nico’s expression turned to ice when he thought about what could have happened to Dani. “One of your patron’s privacy has already been violated. The lady I helped out of here last night hadn’t had any alcohol.”

“Odd, that’s not what you said when you were leavin’ with her.” Danny leaned back in his chair and gripped the armrests to keep his hands from shaking.

“Her blood alcohol level proved otherwise.” Careles was getting a bad feeling at the lack of cooperation. Danny Martello had been at Solstice the night before, so he had opportunity. If Nico was any judge of character, Martello was tough enough to doctor someone’s drink if it served his purpose, which gave the man means. All he needed was motive.

“Not every party girl’s drug of choice is booze.” Martello grinned knowingly and winked as if they were two men sharing a good joke.

Careles’ eyes darkened, and his face went completely blank. “Her narcotics screen was negative.”

“Was she sick or something?” Danny did his best to look concerned though relief surged through his body. He hadn’t completed what he’d set out to do but at least he’d gotten away with the attempt. The woman was smarter and better connected than the ones TK usually hung with, but then, she’d been around longer, too. Since the playoff game against Chicago. he owed King big time. The wide receiver’s last play had cost him a bundle. Unfortunately, the player was in the hospital with two bullet wounds. Martello’d had to find some other way to take revenge.

“Not all drugs show up in a person’s blood. I had the contents of her double–old-fashioned glass analyzed.” Nico pulled out his phone and accessed the email from Dr. Browning. “It contained water, carbon dioxide, and trace amounts of calcium, chloride, fluorine, lithium, magnesium, nitrogen, potassium, silicon, sodium, and strontium, in other words, carbonated water. That wouldn’t account for her apparent intoxication but there was one other item that would: flunitazepam.”

“Flun—as-a-what?” Martello stuttered as the conversation slipped out of his control.

“Flunitazepam. Rohypnol. Roofies,” ice dripped off each word as Nico carefully enunciated it. “A date rape drug that doesn’t show up in a blood tox screen. But I think you’re smart enough to be aware of that already.”

“She didn’t get it here!” The club owner insisted. He felt his insides begin to quiver.

Careles watched the other man’s body language and pushed harder for his cooperation, “Her drink was in one of the special crystal glasses with your club’s logo etched along the rim. The ones reserved for VIP customers.”

“That doesn’t prove nothin’.” Danny had known the drug was hard to detect in the body, but the bitch had gotten out of his club with her glass in hand. “I run a clean club.”

“Then how was the lady drugged?” The man in the black coat studied his opponent, waiting for him to break. “All it would take is one call to the New York State Liquor Authority. As the owner you’re responsible, if any narcotics are dispensed on the premises. They’re nosy bureaucrats who can get lost in red tape, and since Rohypnol has been reclassified to a Schedule I drug, they’re likely to shut you down until they can clear up the uh… misunderstanding.”

“Anyone could have slipped it in her drink.” Martello squinted at Careles, trying to maintain his composure. “You could have done it. You were the one who hauled her out of here. Isn’t that how it works? Some guy puts something in a babe’s drink, waits for her to feel the effects and then takes her to wherever…” 

“I wouldn’t know, but your security tapes will have the answers.” Nico’s lips hardly moved as he spoke. It took all his considerable control to keep his composure. The accusation turned his stomach.

Danny pushed back his chair and tried to mask his fear and doubt with indignation. “I don’t like this. My club has a reputation to maintain. What happens here stays here.” 

“You can count on my discretion, but the Hawks have a reputation to protect as well. Anyone who harms someone involved with the organization has to answer for it.” 

Martello lead Nico to a room above his office. There were banks of monitors lining a wall above a well-organized workstation. “I’ll send Carl, my tech guy to access the information for you.”

“That won’t be necessary.” Careles was familiar with the technology involved.

“It’s very necessary.” Danny glared back. “I’m letting ya in here as a courtesy, but one of my people will accompany you.” Martello was terrified so he struck out verbally. “As I said earlier, you coulda been the one to slip TK’s girlie a Mickey.”

“TK’s girlie?” Nico frowned and pulled lightly on his left ear, as Martello slammed the door.  
……..

Solstice had seven cameras placed at strategic areas throughout the club. Nico and Carl Thomas, a recent grad from Stanford, examined the footage from all but one of them. They saw Dani enter the club and move to the bar but it wasn’t until she reached for her phone that anything unusual happened. 

“Wait, back-up,” Nico asked Carl. “Zoom in on the bar beside that woman.” He pointed to Santino as she turned away from her drink to dig in her purse for her cell.

The camera was positioned to watch the bartender and caught the backs of people at the bar. Dani was seated on the last stool to the right. Only a small portion of the antique oak bar was seen beyond her. “Now run that section as slow as you can.”

“Damn, Mr. Careles, you could be right.” The men watched as an enlarged, blurry hand came in from the area not caught on camera and moved directly over the top of Dani’s drink. The technician played it three times but all they could see was a hand slip quickly over her glass and move away. 

“Are there any cameras that would show us more?” Even knowing what he’d been looking for, Nico was surprised how much it hurt to see Santino being drugged.

“No, Sir.” Thomas quickly brought each camera online until the large main monitor was divided into a grid with seven squares, each showed a different view at the same moment in time, except for one that was filled with snow. “The one that would be the most help is over the cash register and points out into the room but…” He nodded toward the section without a picture. “It went out for repair yesterday afternoon.”

“Thank you for your help. Would you make me a copy of those last ten seconds?” Nico dug a blank flash drive out of his pocket and handed to Carl. 

“Sure thing, anything I can do to help. I’m a real Hawks fan.” The tech quickly made a copy of the few seconds before, during, and after the pertinent incident and loaded it onto the drive. “You hear of that kind of thing happening from time to time but it’s terrible that it took place where I work. Is the lady all right?”

“She’s shaken up, but I got to her before she was harmed.” 

“Good, that’s good.” Carl didn’t hear Nico leave. He was busy rearranging his screens, so he was looking at Solstice in real time. The large main room was empty except for the cleaning crew.

Nico passed a glass-covered bulletin board at the bottom of the stairs, between the men’s and ladies’ room. He took a moment and examined the pictures that were locked inside. They were photos and news clippings of celebrities who frequented Solstices. The one that caught his eye was of Dani Santino and TK hugging in the locker room. He’d been there when it was taken and recognized it immediately. It was after the Hawks had won the first playoff game. TK was shirtless and covered in sweat and champagne. The wide receiver had picked up the petite doctor and swung her around. Both looked ecstatic, and to anyone who didn’t know the backstory, it could have been mistaken for a very intimate moment. Two people caught unawares in the midst of chaos and flash bulbs.

Careles was relieved to see that the publicity department was doing its job. So far the press hadn’t identified the doctor. The caption on the photo read: Wide Receiver catches an arm full of victory.

It took a few seconds longer than usual for Nico to put the pieces together. Since TK had been shot, the head of security hadn’t had more than a few hours of sleep a night. But when it all clicked his temper surged.

“Martello,” he called as his quick strides ate up the distance to the man’s office. “Martello, you still in there?”

“Careles, what the hell.” The club owner grouched. “I’ve given you all the time I can spare.”

“I don’t think so.” Nico stepped into the shorter man’s space. He didn’t need to lay a hand on him to take control of the situation.

“What, what do you want?” Danny gasped.

“What made you think that the woman I took out of here last night was one of TK’s?” Careles glared.

“Uh…well…” he licked his lips unsure what to say.

“Tell me.” Nico spoke softly and leaned his arm against Danny’s chest, pinning him to the door.

“She came in here after him once,” his mouth was so dry it was hard to speak. “And there was a picture. I mean, who else but one of his posse is gonna be rubbin’ up against him like that.”

“Is that why she was treated like a VIP last night?” Nico glared at the frightened man.

“Well…I..uh…”

“You were on the door when she arrived and let her in ahead of the crowd, so you might want to be very careful how you answer that question.” He pushed his elbow harder into the pressure point in Danny’s shoulder.

“Ouch, man you’re hurting me.” He whined.

“Then you better answer my question.” Careles squinted.

“She…uh… looked familiar and made me think of TK. Besides she’s hot.” Danny had been surprised when he saw her close up. She was hot but older than he had expected. His plan had been to feed her the drug. Once he messed up her clothes, he’d see where it led. King’s women usually gave it away easily. If not, he only needed to create the illusion. It would send TK over the edge and hopefully out of football forever. “The hotties are good for business.” He added with a knowing smile. 

“Listen to me very carefully because I am only going to say this once.” Nico leaned his weight into the struggling man. “None of the women who are involved with the Hawks are to be considered ‘good for business’, that one in particular. When they are in your club, I expect you to see that they are treated respectfully and with care. Do I make myself clear?” His voice was low and harsh, barely above a whisper.

“Let me go, damnit, or I’m callin’ the cops.” It was an empty threat but the club owner was terrified.

“Do-you-understand-me.” Nico growled, more command than question

“Yeah, I think I do.” Danny pulled away as Nico loosened his grip. Once he was safely behind his desk, with the large piece of furniture and the length of the room separating them, Martello met Nico’s eyes and smirked. “She belongs to you, doesn’t she? Somehow I never pictured you settling for TK’s sloppy-seconds, Careles.”

Nico’s left brow rose. It was his job to protect anyone involved with The Pittman Group. Martello was a fool and getting into a pissing contest with him would only slow down the investigation. “A woman involved with the Hawks was drugged in here last night. I have the proof from your cameras. You need to start questioning your staff. I’ll be back in a few hours. If you haven’t gotten answers from them, I will.” He turned and opened the door before looking over his shoulder. “One other thing. I want the picture taken down from your ‘trophy case’. It doesn’t belong there.”

“The bartender has the key.” Martello glared, leaning forward so his outstretched palms rested on his desk and took most of his weight.   
………

When the door closed behind Careles, Danny dropped into his desk chair and reached into his bottom desk drawer for his bottle of scotch. He poured himself a glass and then another and another. He kept on drinking until his hands stopped shaking, never once slowing to enjoy the fine, aged single-malt.

“Oh Jesus, Mary, and Joseph,” Martello muttered into his glass. He’d really screwed up. He’d always loved cards, dice and the ponies, but had put all that behind him. He’d kicked the habit until recently, when he’d begun wagering on sports. It had started out with a few careful bets, but this fall, he’d lost control. Football seemed to be his weak spot, and no matter how much he lost, he couldn’t stop. The Hawks game against Chicago had seemed like a Godsend. The team was shaky, and TK was having problems. Danny thought it was a sure thing. When King got his second wind with seconds to spare, it had cost Martello more than he could hope to repay to a man who wasn’t known for his patience.

He blamed his actions on fear. All he’d wanted to do was strike out at Terence King but the player was under heavy guard in the hospital due to a drunken fan’s lunacy. When Danny had seen the woman from the photo with TK, waiting in line for his club, he’d motioned her forward and decided right then and there how to get his revenge.

It wouldn’t get his money back and he’d most likely end up with some broken bones from his lone shark, but he’d have the satisfaction of knowing King would suffer too. Now, it seemed he’d messed this up, too. The woman with the hot body and the fuck me shoes belonged to Nico Careles.

“Shit!” he muttered, unsure who frightened him more: Careles or Dante, the blonde, blue-eyed man who owned his soul.  
………  
Nico headed toward the Queensboro Bridge and Long Island on the other side of the East River. He had a meeting with Tony in a parking lot two miles from the Hawks’ practice field. What he did from there depended on what the older, balding man had found out.  
………  
Dani did her best to ignore the chaos that was swirling around her. Not long after Xeno had pulled into her driveway, another man had arrived at her Manhasset home, and she suspected there was a third parked across the street in a nondescript black car.

“Dr. Santino, this is Kevin O’Connell.” Xeno introduced her to a slim, muscular, fair-haired man carrying tools and coils of coaxial cable.

“Ma’am.” Kevin stood straight, his shoulders back and his arms at his sides. His bearing shouted military. She wondered where Nico dug up these men but knew it would be useless to ask.

“Good to meet you, Kevin.” She smiled despite her headache. 

“Xeno, any idea how long this is going to take?” Dani asked wearily. When O’Connell arrived and began unloading boxes, she gave up any hope that she would be left alone for the afternoon.

“Well, Ma’am, your door alarms need to be upgraded so they can be monitored along with all of Pittman Groups’ others. You should have motion and crash detectors on the windows and secondary motion detectors in the stairwells. We’ll put in three control boxes, one in the master bedroom, the upstairs hall and the last near the door you use the most often when coming and going. You’ll be able to arm and disarm all your alarms from them and switch between maximum and occupied security. Mr. Careles wants cameras at all doors with monitors in the kitchen, the master bedroom and the upstairs hall.”

“Mr. Careles wants cameras?” Dani’s brows rose along with her temper.

“Yes, Ma’am.”

“Well, we’ll see about that,” she muttered as she rubbed her aching temples and pulled out her cell.

“What can I do for you, Dr. Santino?” Nico’s voice echoed in her ear, as if from a distance. Just before he spoke, she’d thought she caught jazz playing in the background but the music disappeared so quickly she believed it was her imagination.

“Where are you?” she demanded.

“On the Queensboro Bridge heading toward the Long Island practice field.” He wasn’t about to tell her that he had another meeting along the way.

“You can’t put security cameras above the entrances to my house. My office is here. My patients have to be guaranteed privacy. How would Marshall Pittman like it if there was a video record of all of his players and investments who have walked though my door?”

“Let me speak to Xeno,” he instructed.

Dani handed over her phone. The conversation between the two men didn’t last more than a few seconds before the large man in her kitchen gave her cell back to her.

“Nico, why do…Nico?” Dani’s eyes fluttered closed and she bit her lower lip. She was surprised that his typical abrupt action caused a bloom of pain in her chest. She’d wanted to ask about the car parked across from her house but he hadn’t given her a chance.

“Sorry, Dr. Santino. The boss had a meeting.” Xeno shrugged and pretended he didn’t see her lips quiver in sorrow and then tighten in anger. “I can rig the camera for your office door so it’s on a separate circuit from the others. That will allow you to arm and disarm it independently.”

“Thank you.” She smiled tightly, feeling as if her life was in free fall. “I’m going upstairs to change. Let me know when you need to get up there.”

“Sure thing, Ma’am.”

All the way to her room, Dani gripped her cellphone. There was a call she needed to make but had been dreading it. Her training told her that the simple fact that she didn’t want to have the conversation made it all the more necessary. Before she could change her mind she punched in a number.

“Dr. Molly Decker,” the tall lanky redhead answered her office line that was routed to her cell when she wasn’t there.

“Mol, it’s Dani,” Santino identified herself.

“Long time no see,” Molly laughed. “How are you doing, kiddo?” Though Molly was slightly younger than Dani, Decker had gone straight to college after high school and on to graduate school. The redhead had been Santino’s mentor when she was doing her PhD. 

“That’s what I wanted to talk to you about. I need…do you have some time for me?”

“Are you all right? Are your children safe?” Molly’s voice was calm but insistent.

“The kids are great and I’m…well I need some help putting my life back in perspective.”

“I can see you right now if you don’t mind my house instead of my office.” The other therapist was worried. No matter what had come Dani Santino’s way, she was always a rock, but it sounded as if she was about to crumble. 

“Right now, I need sleep more than anything. Do you have time tomorrow?”

“How’s five o’clock?” Decker consulted her online schedule. 

“That would be great. Thanks Molly, we’ll talk then.”   
…….

Nico was still frowning in displeasure when he parked in the large lot for Home Depot in Queens. He could picture the French doors that led to a patio outside Dr. Santino's office. A rookie at breaking and entering could pop the lock in seconds. That was easily remedied and he would be sure to have Xeno see to it. What really worried him was the entrance reserved for patients. It led directly into Dani's office, was partially hidden from the street and she wasn't as careful as she should be about checking before opening it. He didn't like leaving either entrance without constant surveillance, but the doctor had a point about patient privacy.

When Tony pulled into the parking space beside him, Nico unlocked his car door and turned up the volume on his music so the sound of Miles Davis would block any recording devices in the area. He made a mental note to be sure and call before he knocked on Dani's door, in the future. It wouldn't do to have his late night visits recorded by even his own people. That done, he moved on to the business at hand.


	7. Like Shards Of Broken Glass

Nico read through the information Tony brought him. “Jesus, what happened to this guy?” He examined Danny Martello’s complete financial records. “Are you sure this is correct?” He asked the older, balding man sitting beside him.

“Yap, that’s it. One of my guys, who knew Martello back in the day, said Danny used to have a real gambling problem, spent too much time at the track and in Atlantic City or Vegas, but that was ten, maybe fifteen years ago. He got himself to GA and was living clean until late last summer, then it all went to hell.”

“It’s hard to believe he could accrue this much debt in a matter of months.” Careles frowned. Numbers didn’t lie, and these numbers told him he’d found a motive for someone striking out at the Hawks in general and Terrance in specific. Nico had one question left: had the club owner acted on his own, or was he coerced? “Who are his major creditors?”

“There’s only one: Coleman Hurst AKA Dante.”

“Martello must have a death wish.” Nico scanned the papers again looking for something he missed the first time through. “According to this, Danny’s debt doubled the night of the Chicago game. He must have been trying to get out of a hole and simply dug himself in deeper. What do we have on Dante other than the usual rumors?”

“Not much. He plays it close to the vest. He makes book on all major sporting events, other than that he’s clean. Set himself up as a venture capitalist with a fancy office in the Financial District. He doesn’t drink, do drugs, or gamble and goes home to the wife and kids in Scarsdale every night.” Tony was frustrated that there wasn’t more there. A guy like that had to have a vice or two buried somewhere. 

“I think we can safely add loan shark and money laundering to the list. His VC is a perfect front. Any mob ties?” 

“That’s the odd part, the Families seem to leave him alone. I can’t decide if he’s too small an operation or if he’s got something on every Don on the East Coast.” Tony speculated.

“Keep looking,” Nico ordered and passed an envelope of cash to the man who worked for him cash and carry. “I need to know if Dante is behind the attack on Dr. Santino or if Martello acted on his own.”

“You need anything else on Danny?”

“Nothing for the moment.” Careles had said he’d return to question Solstice’s staff, but he wanted the owner to sweat. A surprise visit tomorrow would be more effective than the promised one today. “Let me know if you get anything else and be careful. Hurst may appear harmless on paper, but we both know he isn’t.”

“Sure thing, Boss.”

After Tony left, Nico got out of his car and opened his trunk. SEAL training had taught him to keep a go-bag packed and with him at all times. It was a habit that had come in handy countless times over his years with Pittman and was going to once again. There was no time to head back to his condo for a change of clothes, if he was going to take over for the man standing guard at Dr. Santino’s.

He quickly unzipped the side of the small duffle where he kept the pancake holster for his Glock 17. He moved the bag aside and slid away a section of carpet to expose the latch to a hidden compartment. Nico unlocked and opened the built-in weapon’s safe in his car. He quickly transferred the unloaded pistol and two clips to his bag. It had been years since he’d needed to be armed, but he was as confident of his abilities, as he had been in his SEAL years, though he was relieved that he was no longer as comfortable with what he might have to do. 

One check in his wallet verified that his Carry Guard License issued by New York City and the one for Nassau County were up to date and on his person. Though he never doubted that they were, just like he knew that his weapon was clean, oiled and well cared for and his ammunition wasn’t outdated. He’d been in too many tight situations to take chances with his equipment. Like his Tuesday dinners at Le Taj, maintenance of his small collection of arms was done on a regular schedule.  
………..  
Twenty minutes later Nico pulled into his parking spot at the Hawks compound, better known as The Woodlands. It consisted of the practice field, offices and stadium with adjacent public parking structures and lots. His first stop was the basement complex that contained offices for most of his security team and his seldom used personal office. He examined the windowless intersecting corridors and spacious operations bullpen, wondering if this area of quiet activity was the Bat Cave of Dani Santino’s imagination.

“Amanda,” he called to the computer technician who was heading back to her desk from the coffeemaker. “There’s a file on this flash drive that I need scrubbed.” Nico had snagged Amanda Tremont from the FBI’s computer forensics division three years ago. She was the most qualified person on his team to work with the footage Carl Thomas had given him from the security cameras at Solstice. “It’s a priority.”

“Sure thing, Mr. Careles.” She took the drive and headed for her computer. Amanda loved her job with the Hawks. When she’d worked in the Hoover Building she’d been a geek in a roomful of geeks. At the stadium complex, she was surrounded by jocks and ex-military-types, a definite improvement in the view, especially when that attractive Xeno Cho was around. Her boss reminded her of some of the agents she’d had an occasion to interact with at the Bureau, quiet, competent, and a bit of an enigma, but unlike those men and women, Nico Careles was willing to think outside of the box. It often added a touch of creativity to her job.

“I’ll be in my office. Knock, if you have questions.” He unlocked his door and closed it behind him. 

As Amanda went to work on the information Nico had obtained from his visit to Solstice, he quickly took off his coat and jacket, and snapped the holster to his belt, snug against his back. He popped a clip into the Glock and slid the weapon into place, being sure to close the leather guard around the grip so the pistol was locked down. A quick look in the mirror in his private bathroom assured him his sport coat covered any evidence that he was armed.

“Amanda, I’m headed up to see Coach.” He told her as he moved quickly past her desk. “Once that file is cleaned-up, email it to me.”

“Mr. Careles---” she didn’t know how to word the question, she knew she shouldn’t ask. Due to her previous training, she’d understood what she was seeing during the first few seconds of the video. It made her sick to her stomach.

“I can’t talk about it.” He smiled gently at the freckle-faced woman whose glasses were always slipping down her nose. 

“I know…and I’d never…” she sighed and bit her bottom lip. “I hope everyone is all right.”

“Your concern is appreciated.” Was all the reassurance he would gave her.  
………  
“Coach, we need to talk.” Nico walked into the older man’s glass-enclosed office carrying his go-bag in his left hand.

“TK is in the hospital. He can’t be causing trouble in the condition he’s in,” Purnell grunted. He hated that King had been hurt, but for once, he was sure his star player wasn’t running wild. Between his incisions and the chest tube the doctors had left in place, the wide receiver was in enough discomfort to keep him from even flirting with the nurses. It was highly unlikely he’d done anything to warrant Careles’ chilly tone and demeanor.

“This isn’t about him, at least not directly, Pat.” Nico closed the door so they could speak in private. 

The coach was immediately on guard. Something was seriously wrong. Careles only called him by his first name when it was critical. “What’s happened?”

“I need you to order an early curfew for the team. There was an incident at one of the clubs last night and until I have more facts, everyone has to stay in, that includes the wives and girlfriends.”

“What the hell happened and why is this the first I’ve heard of it?” Purnell thundered. “Is this related to the shooting?”

“That is one of the things I’m working on.” Nico was leery of saying more since the last time he spoke with Dani she didn’t want others to know she was involved.

“Was someone else injured?” The coach was beginning to wonder just how high a price the Hawks were going to pay for being in the playoffs. Maybe they were still cursed.

“I’m not at liberty to discuss the situation. Tell the team there will be heavy fines if anyone breaks curfew and that they will have to answer to me. Security is in the process of notifying ancillary staff, but it is imperative that high profile people are given the word personally and discreetly.”

“What the hell happened?” Coach demanded. Though he knew if Nico were going to tell him, he would have already.

“I’d like to meet with everyone, including staff tomorrow, after morning workout, say eleven-thirty.” It was an order and a dismissal, and both men knew it. Careles turned and left the older man’s office.  
……….   
It was almost dark when Nico arrived at Dr. Santino’s Manhasset home. He parked his black Lincoln close enough to the garage so it couldn’t be seen from the street and then went to speak to his man stationed opposite the driveway.

“How’s it going, Ben?” Careles slipped into the passenger seat next to the guard he’d assigned.

“Quiet as a church. There were a few joggers earlier in the day, some moms pushing strollers in the afternoon, and a few cars, but no one so much as slowed down, as they went by.” Ben Tiller looked over at the house and saw the curtain twitch in an upstairs window. It wasn’t the first time. He may be the watcher, but he was being watched.

“That’s good to know. I’ll take the nightshift. You go home and get some sleep, and I’ll see you back here tomorrow at 7 AM.”

“Uh, Boss, I’ve been getting death glares from Dr. Santino on-and-off during the afternoon.” Tiller motioned with the binoculars that he’d used to examine the house and surrounding area, every few minutes.

“And?” Careles raised his brows in question.

“Just thought you might want intel before going in.” Ben finished meekly. There were rumors of the doctor going head-to-head with his boss and the coach on more than one occasion. He didn’t believe that she’d won a confrontation with either of those men, but anyone who would try made him cautious. Added to that, it was a known fact that she held her own with Terrance King. She wasn’t someone Tiller wanted to cross.

“I’ll keep that in mind, but since she is about five foot three and one hundred and ten pounds soaking wet, I don’t think I need backup.” As Nico got out of the car, his face showed nothing, not the pride he felt that Dr. Santino had a commanding reputation even among his men, and not the urge to laugh that Ben felt the need to warn him about the small, kind woman’s impending wrath. After the phone call he’d received, a few hours earlier, he had no doubt she was pissed as hell.

“Uh…yeah…see ya tomorrow.” Tiller drove away quickly, a slight sheen of sweat on his brow. His knuckles whitened on the steering wheel as he wondered what in the world he’d been thinking, speaking to the Boss that way.   
……………  
Dani answered her outside office door when Nico knocked. The corners of his mouth twitched upward, when he saw her. She was wearing dark gray leggings that ended at her ankles and showed off bright pink toe nail polish he remembered from that morning. She had on a dark red sweater that fell below her hips but compensated by having a deep V-neck, causing the material to slide to the edge of her shoulder, exposing freckles left over from summer and a white tank top. Ben had been right, she was squinting, but it lacked its usual impact when the skin under her eyes was smudged and shadowed by exhaustion.

“Your men are out of control.” She frowned at him. He pursed his lips to contain the urge to smile. She had been drugged senseless less than twenty-four hours ago and she was already fighting back. He was damn proud of her. “I thought you said Xeno was going to check out my security system; he and Kevin are taking it apart and rebuilding it.”

“That’s correct.” Nico agreed. “May I come in?”

“Why not, everybody else is…well almost everyone, anyway,” she grouched, as she looked around him and saw that the car that had been parked outside her house was gone. Dani threw up her hands in exasperation and turned away from the door. Nico followed her into the house, discreetly leaving his go-bag under the table to his left and putting a file folder and his iPad beside a large jar of jellybeans. “Was that your man watching my house all day?” She turned back and poked him in the chest. 

“Yes, it was.” 

“You can’t send your posse in here and simply take over.” She raised her hand to poke him again to emphasize her displeasure, but Nico anticipated her move and caught her hand in his.

“I didn’t.” Nico insisted. “We talked about this before we left my loft and you agreed.” He tilted his head to the left and rubbed his thumb across the back of her hand in support. 

“I…” She ground her teeth and pulled her hand free. Her life was out of control, and she hated it. “I…didn’t expect all of this…this disruption.” She pointed to the two men in her hall, waiting to talk to their boss and the loops of cable and equipment that were stacked in various places around her home.

“It’s so I can better protect you and your children.” He spoke softly and carefully touched her arm to try and calm her. This time she accepted his reassurance.

“I…know.” Dani caved, unable to keep on fighting. “I’m sorry. I was angry and you just happened to be here.” 

“I understand,” Nico assured her.

She shook her head, refusing to let her actions slide. “I know better. There is no excuse.”

“Stop holding yourself to a higher standard. Even a therapist is allowed to be human.” His words were for her ears only. He was trying to give comfort, though it was a skill he didn’t believe he possessed. “After what you’ve been through, in the last twenty-four hours, you’ve more than earned the right.”

Her eyes slipped closed, and she nodded in agreement. Intellectually, she knew he was correct, but it was hard to accept. He had been there for her every step of the way since Terrance was shot. She should have been strong enough not to take her frustration out on him.

“Dani?” he questioned with worry. “I need to talk to my guys. You okay for a minute?” He knew she was a long way from okay, but he had one more thing to do before he could give her his undivided attention.

“Yeah, fine.” She forced a smile on her face before turning and walking slowly down the hall to her kitchen. She was ashamed of the way she’d been snipping at everyone, since Xeno brought her home hours earlier; but they were all treating her like delicate crystal. It grated on her nerves and made her want to scream. 

“Boss,” Xeno spoke quietly with Careles. “Sorry we aren’t further along. We’re having to run a shi—a bunch of new cable and it takes time to snake them through the walls without causing too much damage”

“Take as long as needed. The job has to be done right. I’ll get a crew out here after you’re through to clean up, but I’m sure the Doctor appreciates that you’re keeping the chaos to a minimum. Were you able to rig anything for tonight?” Nico had received a text from Kevin stating that Dr. Santino’s old security system wouldn’t interface smoothly with the more advanced one they were putting in. Once they began exchanging cables it would likely be down until they were finished.

“No, Sir. It’ll be tomorrow or the next day before we have everything up and running. I’ve told the doctor, but I don’t think she realizes what that means,” Kevin answered since he’d been working on a solution to the problem. 

“I’ll take care of it.” Nico assured his men as he walked them to Santino’s front door.

Dani came back into her front hall when she heard the door close. She was surprised to find Nico leaning against the large, glass and mahogany, double-doors that served as her formal entry. “I thought you were giving Xeno a ride back to the city.” She could hear doors slamming on O’Connell’s pickup and men’s voices disappear in the distance, as the truck pulled out of the space where her mother usually parked.

“Kevin is taking care of that.” He crossed his arms and watched her; careful to show nothing of what he was feeling. “We need to talk.” He didn’t like to do this now, but she had some decisions to make before he could proceed.

“Oh.” Her mind spun. She didn’t want to think about what he must have discovered that would make him use his iceman face with her. She hadn’t seen it since right after he’d told her Terrance was shot.

“You know your security system isn’t functioning?” 

“Yeah, Xeno told me.” She wasn’t afraid now, but was well versed in how people processed trauma. Though everyone moved at his or her own pace, she realized that her calm wouldn’t last. It would have been nice to have the reassurance of a home protection service at her fingertips.

Nico moved closer slowly, so as not to scare her, taking off his overcoat and hanging it over the banister. “Tonight, I’m your security.”

“Pardon?” she questioned, unsure what he meant.

“I’ll sleep on one of the couches down here.” He looked through the doors into her office, hoping the sofa in the living room was long enough for him. Years ago, he’d spent time on a therapists couch and had no wish to revisit the situation in any form.

“That’s not necessary.” She protested. 

“It’s very necessary.” He watched her face fall and her shoulders sag. “I understand that all you want is to be left alone to try and get past what happened last night.” Nico stepped into her personal space and cupped her shoulders. “But you can’t do that, yet, especially since my men disabled your alarm. As I said, we need to talk and you have some decisions to make. Once that’s taken care of, I’ll be here, but I’ll be as unobtrusive as possible.”

“You’re good at that…the unobtrusive part.” She almost smiled as she stepped back. Her mood swings were beginning to bother her. It was one more thing she’d have to mention when she saw Molly, her therapist, tomorrow afternoon.

“Yeah, it’s one of my specialties along with sneaking up on people.” The corners of his mouth slid upward; as he thought of the many times he’d deliberately caught her by surprise.

“My dinner is ready, and there is more than enough for two. Would you care to join me?” She looked over her shoulder as she headed for the kitchen. She was stalling, and she knew it, but she was afraid that once she heard what he had to say her stomach would rebel and her hunger would desert her. 

“I was hoping you’d ask. Whatever you’re cooking smells delicious.” He followed her down the hall, leaving his bag, iPad and file folder in her office.

“It’s just stew that I pulled out of the freezer and a salad.” As a working mom, Dani had learned the wisdom of doubling a recipe when she cooked and storing the rest in the freezer. All she’d had to do that afternoon was defrost the meat and stock in her microwave, add potatoes, onions, carrots and celery and put it all on to cook. Making a salad had taken no time at all. Two hours later, she had a complete meal with minimal effort.

“What can I do to help?” Nico asked.

“Add another place setting to the center island. The pasta bowls and salad plates are in the cupboard behind you.” She pointed. “The silverware is in the drawer below it. What would you like to drink? water, wine, or something stronger?” Dani stretched and stood on her toes to reach glasses on a shelf that was an easy reach in her usual high heels. “I’m sticking to water but you’re welcome to something stronger if you like.”

“Water is fine. I never drink alcohol when I’m working.” 

“There is burgundy in the stew. It cooked all day before being frozen and has simmered for hours since it was defrosted.” She put the salad down between their two placemats and sprinkled it with olive oil and then some raspberry-balsamic vinegar.

“Alcohol boils at one-hundred-seventy-three degrees Fahrenheit. The alcoholic content of most wines is between 12 and 14 percent. It sounds like that stew has cooked for at least eight hours?” He looked at her for conformation and she nodded and blinked, unable to form a coherent response. “Then it shouldn’t be a problem.” Nico grinned at her shocked expression and handed her the pasta bowls. 

“How do you know all these things?” she gasped and began filling the bowls. Never expecting him to answer she added, “I know…I know…you’d tell me but then you’d have to kill me.”

“Chemistry class,” he spoke hesitantly from right behind her, startling her with his response. Nico reached around her and steadied her left hand, which held a bowl and her right, which gripped a ladle filled with hot stew. “Careful, you’ll get burned. Sit down. I’ll take care of this.”

Dani carefully untangled herself from the tall man and looked at him in shock. “You gave me a real answer to a question.”

“Dr. Santino, all my answers are real. I never lie. You know that.” He finished serving dinner and sat across from her. “Besides, I can’t kill you tonight. It would damage my reputation. I’m your security detail.”

Dani dissolved into laughter for the first time in what felt like forever. It made her feel great; it made her feel whole.

They were through with dinner and working companionably to clean up, when she realized Nico was still wearing his sport coat over his gray button-down and jeans. “I’m flattered that you dressed so formally for dinner, but I think you can dispense with the jacket, if you like. We’re in the kitchen and my outfit, as dazzling as it is, is usually reserved for housecleaning and gardening. You might as well be comfortable, too.”

Nico froze and looked her in the eyes. She’d told him once that a lie of omission was still a lie. He was armed and in her home. She had a right to know…or did she? Was it a lie if he was doing it to protect her? No one would be hurt if she never found out. No one else was involved… Even as the thoughts flew though his mind he knew the answers. The weapon under his coat wasn’t a lie. It simply was what it was. But, if the Glock was the reason he didn’t take off his jacket, then he became a lie. He had no doubt she would be hurt, if she ever found out from anyone else but him, or at any time but now. 

“What? What am I missing?” her voice squeaked, as she picked up their water glasses.

He shrugged out of his sport coat. When it slid down his arms, he caught it by the collar with his right hand and he turned slowly around so she had a good view of what he’d been hiding, before he hung the jacket on the back of his stool.

“Nico, you’ve got a gun,” she gasped. When she saw the holster nestled snugly against his back, and the angry, black pistol, dark against his pearl gray shirt, the glasses she was holding in wet hands slipped from her fingers and crashed into broken shards on the tile floor at her feet.

“I have a four, actually. The other three are locked in my weapons’ safe at home.” His eyes had turned cold and his tone flat. All of his defenses were firmly in place.

“Why?” she whispered. Shaking her head, she began to step forward, completely forgetting she was barefoot and that there was broken glass everywhere.

“Dr. Santino, stop,” his words were clipped and devoid of emotion. In one quick movement, he was beside her and picked her up. Glass crunched under his shoes as he carried her to the counter. “Sometimes, it is necessary to take extra precautions, and this is one of those times.” He was talking about the Glock secured to his waist, but he read doubt in her eyes as she clung to him in confusion. 

“Wait.” She reached for him and felt the soft material of his shirt slip against her fingers as he moved away.

“Stay put,” Nico commanded, reading her body language. She was going to jump back down onto the kitchen floor. “You aren’t wearing shoes. Where is your broom?”

“Nico, stop!” She glared at him. It was making sense now. She’d wondered why he was wearing a boxy jacket that was so different from the sleek slim fitting suites and sport coats he usually wore. He’d dressed like that this morning, before they’d left his loft, all the time he’d known he might need to put on a gun. Hell, he might have even been wearing it then, but somehow she doubted it.

“Your broom, Dr. Santino?” He read her easily, since she was so tired and unable to mask what she was feeling. In a matter of seconds, she’d gone from surprised, confused, angered, and finally to hurt. 

“No, you’re not doing this. I’ll go to a hotel or Margo’s house.”

“You don’t need to go anywhere, I can clean up the glass in no time.” He deliberately chose to misunderstand her.

“Damnit, Nico, that’s not…” She covered her mouth with one hand and gripped the counter with the other. Dani felt her throat and eyes fill with tears, if she spoke now they would come pouring out. 

Nico had stopped waiting for her to answer and found the broom on his own. He swept the floor clean in the time it took her to regain her control.

“Just a little broken glass.” He walked slowly to where she was sitting on the counter. “Not anything to get upset about.” He reached out and gently brushed a stray tear off her cheek.

“That’s not---” She began but he wouldn’t let her finish. Nico held up a finger in the small space between his lips and hers. He didn’t understand what was happening, but knew that her soft breath against his throat was a very dangerous thing.

“I may have missed some of the glass. You shouldn’t walk on this floor without shoes.” He picked her up and carried her into the hall and flipped off the kitchen light as if to put an end to something he wanted no part of.

Dani shivered, unsure what was going on. It wasn’t until her feet touched the hardwood floor that led to her living room that her thought process reasserted itself. “Wait, Nico, you aren’t walking away without talking about this.” She grabbed his arm and felt the muscles ripple under his sleeve. “The gun. Why are you wearing it?”

“I told you, it was a precaution.”

“No…no…” She shook her head. “You can’t do this. I won’t be the reason you might have to kill again. I won’t put you in that position.”

Nico Careles was caught completely by surprise. He was sure she would be repulsed or disgusted; instead she was worried about him. She was upset that she was putting him in a situation of potentially doing violence. “Dr. Santino, Dani, after what happened to Terrance and then you last night, I’m not taking chances. Anyone who I would have sent here tonight would be armed. It’s part of the business.” They both knew this was something he’d never delegate and neither was willing to examine that thought.

“It’s not what you usually do. If you can’t bribe them, you look the person in the eyes and play with your sunglasses…and they…panic.” She had a tight grip on his arm, afraid he’d give her an evasive answer and walk away. He usually did that, too.

“That particular strategy only works if my target can see what I’m doing.” Nico’s lips curved up slightly at the corners of his mouth. They were having an absurd conversation, but it felt dangerous and far too revealing.

“That’s not what I mean, and you know it. Just being you is enough.” Dani’s chin rose with determination. 

“There is a reason for that,” he sighed, knowing it was the truth. “There are some situations where looking and acting tough aren’t adequate.” He knew he was fully capable of backing up his words with actions but it wasn’t something he ever wanted her to see.

Dani read soul deep sorrow in his eyes, but needed more information. “I want to understand, Nico.” 

“Do you really?” he masked the question as a harsh warning, hoping it hid the desperate hope she awoke in him. His emotions erupted and something inside of him snapped. The ground was slippery beneath his feet, and he was being drawn in by an innocent woman who didn’t know when to butt the hell out. 

“Of course,” she stuttered at the blank, cold expression on his face.

“Okay, lesson number one,” his words rushed out in quiet, controlled anger. Nico let old reflexes take over. His right hand reached automatically for the back of his waist and he drew his weapon. A moment later he’d popped the clip and stowed it in his pocket.

“What…what’s gotten into you?” Dani gasped.

“Nothing that hasn’t been there all along. You were so interested in my weapon; now’s the time to learn.” His body moved with a contained strength and elegance that, up until now, she had only seen at the ballet, but this was no dance. Seconds later, he’d spun her around until her back was pressed flat against his chest and his long fingers were wrapped around her wrists as he shoved the grip of his pistol into her hands. He held her tightly with his elbows between her body and her arms. The control was his. 

Dani felt surrounded. Terror ripped through her, but she didn’t have the breath to scream. This was too much like her imagination of the night before.

“Tighten your fingers on the grip and feel the weight.” Nico’s voice rasped in her ear. His scruff rubbed against her skin and caught in her hair. “It isn’t loaded, so it’s only a little over a pound. With the clip in, it’s almost two pounds.”

“I…uh…uh…don’t want to do this.” She huffed and tried to wiggle free, but he had her contained. She closed her eyes and concentrated on his scent and his voice instead of his actions. 

“Hold still,” he ordered. “Your lesson isn’t over yet. Now hold the weapon like you mean it.” He was damned if she would slip away to try her therapist tricks on him again. No one tried to psychoanalyze him and got away with it.

“Now what?” she challenged, glad for the anger that edged out her panic. Her fingers clung so tightly they trembled. If he weren’t supporting her wrists, she knew his ugly toy would land on the ground.

“You learn.” He told her, trying to concentrate on what he was doing and not the way her hair smelled of his shampoo or that it tickled his cheek that was pressed tightly against hers. “You’re holding a Glock 17 4th Generation. I bought it two years ago to replace my original 17. It’s a semi-automatic 9mm. It’s round travels at 1109 feet/second, and due to an almost non-existent recoil, the entire magazine can be emptied without having to re-sight, making this an extremely fast and efficient weapon when being used by an experienced marksman. Dr. Santino, I was and still am a very experienced marksman.” As his fury slowly drained, he became aware that she was trembling, but he had one last piece of information to impart. “That is who I am. The damn sunglasses are simply show.” What he’d done to her was mean and spiteful, but her softly worded concern had taken a large chunk out of a wall it had taken him years to build. Nico needed that wall in place. She was already playing havoc with his desires, pushing her away was the only safe option.

“Are you through?” her words contained venom laced with tears. “This gun is not who you are. You’re a hell of a lot more than a mindless killing machine.” Her eyes were swimming but she refused to give in. “And I like the damn sunglasses!”

Nico shook his head and gently peeled her fingers away from the grip of his pistol. “I’m sorry.” He popped in the clip and holstered it. He saw her chin wobble as she blinked away tears and knew that this time he was the one who had reduced her to sorrow. It was a truth that burned like a bitch. “I’m sorry, I just…” he whispered unsure what to say so he simply pulled her around so her head was in the hollow of his shoulder and he could ran his hands up and down her back. He’d hated seeing her with the Glock in her hands even if he’d forced it there. 

“You were upset, and I was here.” She paraphrased their conversation from after she lost her temper when he arrived.

“No, that’s not it.” He denied it because he wouldn’t give her a lie of omission no matter how much it cost him. She’d been hurt enough by men who took advantage of women. 

“Do you remember what you said to me that night you came here seeking clarity?” she asked as she rested her forehead against his chest, too exhausted and shaken to do the smart thing and put some distance between them.

“Yes.” He reached for her sweater that had slipped in their tussle. It was resting on her left bicep and he pulled it back to her shoulder. Nico studied his fingers rubbing along the strap of her tank top. It was his self-imposed punishment to touch only cotton when he desired the silk of her skin.

“I’m talking about the very beginning, when I asked you if you’d killed someone.” She finally looked up and met his eyes.

“And I told you that I hadn’t, recently.” He stopped torturing himself with her strap. He couldn’t afford to be distracted. Even bone-weary and broken, Dani Santino had a mind like a steel trap.

“When was the last time you had to carry that thing or one like it?”

He looked at her carefully, weighing his answer. “I go to the shooting range every week, but other than that it’s been years. Only once or twice since the military when I was transporting…some items…for Marshall.”

“Stop holding yourself to a higher standard.” She gave him a gentle smile and returned his words from earlier. “Even a tough security guy is allowed to be human and after the week you’ve had, you’ve more than earned it.”

“There is more to it than that.” He gripped her shoulders so she wouldn’t dance away and distract him from his point. “You need to understand that the man I was a few minutes ago is very much a part of me. It might not be as easy as it once was, but if I needed to, I could point that Glock at someone and pull the trigger. I don’t carry it for show or to scare people. It’s not a pair of sunglasses. If I couldn’t or wouldn’t be willing to use deadly force, walking around armed is an easy way to die and take others with me.”

They watched each other carefully, both digesting his words and understanding them as the truth he honored. 

“All right, then.” Dani’s voice shook, but she needed to know more. “What did you discovered today that is so bad that you’d put on your gun after all this time?” She held onto the front of his shirt not sure he wouldn’t simply walk away in silence.

“My weapon, not my gun,” he suppressed a grin, remembering hours of military drills.

“Pardon?” She blinked in surprise as much from what he said as the feel of his hand lightly holding her elbow.

“It’s called my weapon, not my gun.” His lips twitched when her pale face suddenly flushed and he knew she understood what he was referring to.

“Oh…Oh…” Dani squinted at him, knowing she couldn’t let her mind, or eyes, go there. It took her a moment but she shook off her embarrassment and stepped back. “Well whatever. I’m in no mood to quibble over semantics. What has changed?”

“I have some answers about last night.” He reached for her elbow again as she rocked back on her heels.

“Oh.” She gripped the sleeve of the arm that was supporting her. “How much did you find out?”

“Enough.”

“Stop it. You’re being evasive again. It makes it worse because my imagination runs wild.” Dani turned to sit down and was surprised to discover they were still in her hallway, a few steps away from the dark kitchen.

“I know who drugged you, but the information I have won’t hold up in a court of law.” It was as much as he was going to say without an audio scrambler and there wasn’t any place to set it up in the hall.

“Oh, God.” Dani had been right. Nico was armed because of her. Because of what he’d discovered following leads for her. “I need to sit down.”

“My files are in your office.” He put his hand on her back to keep her steady as they walked down the hall.

“Uh…wait…I don’t want to go over them there. It’s where I work with patients.” She’d done everything in her power to make that space feel safe, intimate and tranquil. She had an idea there was nothing safe or tranquil about what was coming and she’d closed the door on intimate with this man, the first time she’d seen him with Gabrielle Pittman.


	8. Deciphering A Jenga Tower

A few minutes later, they were seated on one of the two large couches that were at right angles on either side of the living room fireplace. Nico took out an audio scrambler from his pocket and engaged it before placing it on the coffee table in front of them. “Xeno and Kevin did a thorough sweep of your home, and it’s clean, but the street isn’t out of range.”

“You’re paranoid,” Dani accused.

He shrugged and gave her a relaxed smile. “Just because you’re paranoid, doesn’t mean they aren’t after you.”

“Henry Kissinger?” she squinted, recognizing the quote but unsure of it’s origin.

“Nope, Kurt Cobain.” Nico’s eye brightened as if he were laughing. “It’s a common mistake, for some reason.”

“You don’t look like a Grunge Band kinda guy,” she speculated.

“Just because I can quote Nirvana’s deceased lead singer, doesn’t necessarily make me a fan.” He turned his attention to his file folder before Dr. Santino could pry further. “Most of the items in here are confidential. I’ve obtained these documents from a…source and didn’t inquire how they came into his possession.”

“You’re saying…?” She faltered and stopped when his eyes darkened from hazel to almost brown. It was evident he didn’t want questions.

“I’m not saying anything.” He watched her carefully consider his response.

“Plausible…um…deniability,” Dani whispered, tripping over the words. 

“As I told you, I know who drugged you.” He went on as if he hadn’t been interrupted. “But I cannot prove it in a court of law. I think a case could be built over time, but I can’t guarantee that it would stay out of the media or that when it was all over that Danny Martello wouldn’t walk away with little more than a warning from the State Liquor Authority.”

“It was that man? The one who owns Solstice?” She shivered and wrapped her arms around her body to stay warm. 

Nico reached for Dani and pulled her close. It didn’t dawn on him how out of character his action was until he felt her face pressed against his neck. He’d held lots of women in his time, but that was always a prelude to mutual seduction. This was…this was… His mind froze, refusing to take the thought further.

She felt him tense beneath her cheek and knew he was fighting the instinct to pull back. Nico Careles wasn’t a man who touched, “Thank you,” she sniffed and moved out of his personal space. It was easier to be the one to break contact than have him push her away. “But I don’t understand why that man tried to hurt me. I’ve never done anything to him. I don’t even know him.” It was hard for her to keep on asking questions when her head was spinning.

“Are you sure you want the details?” he asked gently. She was already pale and shaken. She didn’t need it all laid out in front of her.

“Yes,” she said firmly. “I need to know. I need to know all of it.” It was necessary, deniability be damned. Not only had that man thrown her life into turmoil and doubt, but Nico was armed for the first time in years because of what he’d discovered. If she was going to come to grips with what happened that night and its ramifications for all those involved, she needed knowledge.

“All right.” He showed Dani the tape Amanda had cleaned-up for him. He’d received the email at dinner, but ignored his phone when it had vibrated in his jacket pocket. “This is how he got the Rohypnol into your Pellegrino.” He ran it in real time, hoping she’d be satisfied with that. Nico had taken a moment, when she was putting away the leftovers, to check his mail and had watched it in slow motion. It was a close-up peek into the dregs of his dark world that she didn’t need to see.

“Oh, God, I just turned away for a second.”

“That’s all the time it takes.” His voice was stern and unyielding. She’d learned a hard lesson but was lucky; it could have been much worse. He was used to giving sit-reps and after action reports, but this was much harder than he’d anticipated.

“How do you know this is Martello?” She looked up into his grim face.

“The video is only a small piece of the puzzle. It’s been scrubbed by one of my team.” Nico ran the video again. As the hand was over Dani’s glass, he hit pause. He touched the screen on his iPad and swept his thumb and forefinger outward, enlarging what was on the tablet. They were given a clear view of a man’s left hand. “Look at his little finger. What do you see?”

“There is a strip of pale skin, like from a pinky ring.” Dani’s nose scrunched upward. She wasn’t fond of men’s jewelry with the exception of a plain wedding band and cufflinks.

“Very good, Dr. Santino.” He nodded in satisfaction and closed out of the file. He didn’t want her to watch a repeat of someone slipping something into her drink. “According to my source, Danny Martello has worn a diamond ring on the little finger of his left hand for decades. The story, as Danny likes to tell it, is that Al Capone gave it to his great-grandfather.” Nico lips twisted, expressing his doubt.

“Does he have mob connections? Is that why you’ve got a gu—weapon?” Suddenly Dani was afraid, not just for herself but for the man sitting next to her. “Is Martello like the guys who came after Jason Coogan?”

“No, they are small time compared to the man Danny has gotten himself involved with. But that’s a separate issue.” At least he hoped it was. Tony was still digging to see if Dante was involved. “Now that I know, Solstice has been blacklisted.” 

“What do you mean?”

“I vet all of the clubs, bars, restaurants, and so on, in the area. Players who frequent an establishment that I know has…shall we say… shady dealings have to answer to me. It is for their own good as well as the Hawks. The NFL comes down hard on players and teams if there is so much as a hint of gambling. One of my jobs is to be sure no one gets into a situation where the outcome of a game might come into question. You’ll find a copy of that list in your email, Dr. Santino. As a member of the organization, you will be expected to follow the same rules.” Nico had slipped on his head of security demeanor and expected no arguments.

“You afraid I’ll use hypnosis to get some of the players to throw a game?” She knew it wasn’t right, but when he took himself too seriously, she couldn’t help pushing his buttons.

“I’m more afraid of Terrance, Boozier, and a few others ending up in jail for beating up anyone who tried to give you a difficult time. But, now that you mention it, maybe I should have Xeno sit in on your sessions.” His eyes lit up with glee. If the doctor was going to dish it out, she’d better be able to take it.

“Oh, no you don’t, mister.” Dani glared at him until she saw his eyes. “How do you do that? Not a muscle in your face moves but your eyes are laughing at me.”

“It’s a trade secret and not even my reputation as your security tonight would be enough to protect you if I told you.” It was a game he enjoyed playing with her, and it usually made her laugh. Nico had unleashed his temper when she’d been vulnerable and he would do a lot to make it up to her.

Dani giggled until his words penetrated her tired mind. “Wait…wait a second.” Her crooked smile was replaced with a frown, and she curled her fingers around his wrist. It was becoming a habit, touching him when she had a hard question to ask. “Is that a real worry? Not the hypnosis thing, but that some of the guys might try to…uh…uh.” She searched for the right word.

“Defend your honor?” Nico knew exactly how good it would feel to put his fist in Martello’s face, but he’d left impulsive behavior behind years ago. He had a much more creative revenge in mind. All it would take was one call to Marshall Pittman. The football players, on the other hand, were used to expressing themselves physically and he had no doubt what their reaction would be. “It is a very real possibility.”

“Then they can’t find out,” she whispered desperately. 

“Dani, just because they’d want to take action, doesn’t mean I’d let them.” He covered her hand that was still holding on to him. “The decision about going to the authorities is still yours.”

“No, no, I can’t take a chance.” Without thinking, she ran her nails lightly across the sparkly cuff bracelet on her left arm, worried about her personal and professional life. “There’s too much to lose and it’s not just the team. My divorce papers are signed and filed. I’m the custodial parent, but I won’t take any chances of Ray finding out. He’s angry and could use this to try and go after my kids.” She shook her head unable to understand her ex-husband’s actions. “The thing is, he’d rather have his weekends and vacations free to date, than worry about Ray Jay and Lindsey. He loves them, but he isn’t used to being the primary caretaker…and…uh…as angry as he is about the divorce, he’s kinda enjoying the single life.”

“He knows you want them and would use his children to cause you pain.” It was a statement not a question. Nico had been aware there was animosity on Ray’s part, but Dani had assured him things were better. “Do I need to have a talk with him.”

“No, please, I don’t want my children’s father to disappear.” She looked up at him, finally pulling her hand free from his, a tiny grin on her face. “Actually, it would be kind of a relief if he’d leave us alone, but they love him. So no, none of your tricks.” She shook her finger at him.

“Where do you get these ideas about me?” Nico asked, innocently.

“Asks the man wearing a gun.” She tried to look tough, but her grin morphed into a sad smile ruining the effect. She hated that he was armed because of her.

“Weapon,” he automatically corrected. 

“Semantics.” This time Dani was able to meet his eyes and not blush. Freud could take a flying leap and so could the Navy. She didn’t give a damn what Nico called that ugly black thing strapped to his belt, there was nothing phallic about it. It was death, pure and simple, though the man carrying it was anything but simple.

“Dr. Santino…Dani,” Nico spoke softly, brushing a strand of stray hair behind her ear. Her eyes had glazed over, and she’d gone far away. 

“Hmmm, what?” She blinked at him in surprise. “Sorry my mind was wandering.”

“We can finish this tomorrow morning.” He nodded toward his file folder on the coffee table in front of them. Nico wasn’t fooled for a moment. She was tired, but it had been his badly timed attempt at humor about the Glock that had sent her a million miles away. 

“What time is it?” Dani yawned and stretched. It felt like midnight, but she was sure it couldn’t be that late.

“A little after nine.” He kept his eyes on his watch, glad for something to distract him from her slender curves as she worked the kinks out of her muscles.

“I’d rather keep going. That way tomorrow can be a new day.” She knew it wasn’t that simple, but it gave her a goal that she badly needed. “That is unless you’re tired. Nico, you can’t have been getting much sleep since Terrance was shot. Did you get any last night?”

“I’m good to go.” He reached for the file folder and pulled out a number of photocopies. “Take a look at these.”

“What am I looking at?” Dani gazed at neat rows of numbers.

“They are bank records and accounting information on Danny Martello and Club Solstice.” He ran his finger along the columns. “These are assets, and these are liabilities. Late last summer, Solstice’s accounts were healthy. Assets are about even with liabilities. For a new club, that is impressive. When a venture is just starting out, it usually runs in the red for months before it breaks even. Here is September: the numbers begin to slip until, by December, there are no liquid assets, and there’s a pile of past due notices. Danny isn’t in any better shape personally.” He pulled four more enlarged photos from the bottom of the stack and handed them to Dani. “This is an equity loan against Martello’s Midtown condo and the real estate that houses his club, and these last three are personal lines of credit, all maxed out. The man owes money all over town, and that is just the tip of the iceberg.” 

“I don’t understand. What would cause that club to lose so much money?”

“It isn’t the club that has problems; it’s the owner. He’s been gambling. The word I’ve gotten is that he has lost big betting on football. His biggest loss to date was the Hawks v. Chicago game.”

“I still don’t see why you think this man is the one who drugged me. Okay, Martello is known to wear a pinky ring but I bet there are thousands of other men in New York City who do. He was in debt, but lots of people are in over their heads. It’s so…so circumstantial.”

“Exactly,” Nico agreed. “But there’s a bit more. When I spoke with him this morning, he was angry and uncooperative. At first I thought he was just trying to be difficult, trying see how far he could push me, but it turned out he had a reason.” He reached into his folder for the newspaper clipping of Terrance and Dani. “He had this in among some pictures in a display case.” Nico handed it to her and watched her study it. “Danny Martello thinks you are one of King’s women.”

“That’s just crazy. He’s my patient…almost a friend but no…never.” She closed her eyes and was relieved that, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t get her mind to go there. “As nice as your wide receiver is, he just isn’t my type.” She nodded; pleased she’d put it so politely. A rumor like that could put her license in jeopardy. 

“It’s quite a compliment to Terrance,” Nico whispered, sure she hadn’t heard him over her tirade.

“But I still don’t get why Danny would come after me, even if I was involved with…with… TK. He’s a nice young man but just that…a young man…a boy almost,” she stuttered to a stop before she said too much. She’d almost compared him to… no she wasn’t going there either. 

Nico took a moment and decided to build his case point-by-point. “Martello was there last night. We both saw him, you at the beginning of the evening and me at the end. Xeno’s interview with the bartender states that Danny was hanging around the area of the long bar while you were there. As the owner, he knows where all of the security cameras are. He knew that the one camera that would have gotten a clear picture of what happened at the main bar last night was out for repair. He is heavily indebted to a bookie with a dangerous reputation. He thought you were a special favorite of Terrance’s. What better way to hurt a man, whom he couldn’t get to, than through his girlfriend?” His voice went on and on, making Dani dizzy. It was all so practical and logical and it made her want to cry because there was really no proof of anything.

“The police can’t use the bank statements and financial information you’ve compiled, can they?” She was lost and hurt and very afraid to ask Nico what he believed Martello’s endgame had been.

“The Financial Right to Privacy Act states that a court order, subpoena, or search warrant is needed to access bank records. One would have to show probable cause for a judge to issue any of those. My source has numerous contacts, but I don’t believe these documents were obtained through proper channels. If we turned them over to the authorities, they would be thrown out of court along with any evidence that was discovered due to their use, because it would be the fruit of the poisonous tree. The only things we have, if you want to pursue this, are the tape you just viewed and the liquid that was in your glass from last night.” He thought carefully for a moment. He didn’t want to influence Dani in anyway. The decision was hers, no matter what Marshall Pittman wanted. “Between those two, it should be enough to get a search warrant for the club and maybe Martello’s home. If Danny still has any Rohypnol in his possession, we could luck out. The Drug-Induced Rape Prevention and Punishment Act ups the ante, making it a federal offense to use…”

“You sound like a lawyer,” Santino accused in frustration.

“I’ve had the education but don’t practice, unless you count running security and odd jobs for Pittman Group. Basically, I keep that corner of the corporation within the law. Marshall has a cadre of attorneys for everything else.”

Dani stood and paced in front of the large fireplace at the end of the couches. “This doesn’t make any sense…I don’t understand…he was angry…wanted revenge and…and… what?”

“Are you asking me what Martello planned for you after the Rohypnol took effect?” Nico moved slowly to stand beside her.

“Yeah, I guess I am,” her voice cracked, and she looked up at a man she’d come to trust more than she realized.

“I don’t know.” He thought carefully and finally told her a complete truth in far more detail than she ever would have asked for. “Once he put the drug in your drink, legally, the intent was there. Would it have made any difference, if he touched you or not, if you’d woken up in an ally with your clothes torn and no memory of what had happened?”

“No,” she shivered and covered her face with her hands. “I know the psychological facts and have read the literature. Women who are raped have their lives changed. It’s hard to deal with. It takes time, but with therapy, and support and understanding from their loved ones, they can work it through. It will always be there, but they can come to terms with it. Women who have been drugged and raped have a much harder time. They have to find a way to live with the idea of what might have happened. It’s much harder because there is nothing definite to work on. A person’s imagination is a powerful thing…”

“Stop it, Dani.” Nico gripped her upper arms and pulled her against his body. “Just stop talking like that. You know that you were all right. You were smart and called me as soon as…oh damn,” he sighed and stiffly wrapped his arms around her. She was tiny, exhausted, and frightened, and he’d give almost anything to turn back the clock and prevent her from being broken so badly.

“I’m all right, Nico.” Dani shoved gently against him. He felt too good. She couldn’t allow herself to use him like that. Right or wrong, he was in love with Gabrielle Pittman. Dani Santino had no place in his life except as a colleague and, with luck, a friend. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to fall apart, again.”

“I’ve seen worse.” But he’d never willingly stayed around when it happened, except for Juliette.

“I bet you hated every second of it,” she yawned. “I can’t do much more tonight, or I’m liable to end up a wet blob on your shirt, and that would only embarrass us both. I need to get some sleep, and you should, too.”

“All that is really left is for you to make a decision about how you want it handled.” Nico watched her eyes droop and her body sway. He knew he shouldn’t have taken her through the tangled tower of evidence he’d collected. 

“I don’t think…” She paused and sighed in frustration. “It just seems like a waste of time to take this to the police. Can I let you know tomorrow night? I have a 5 PM appointment with a therapist. Maybe, it’ll give me some clarity.” She smiled softly, knowing he’d understand the reference.

“Ahhh yes.” He grinned, as unexpected warmth bloomed through his chest. “Sounds like a wise idea.” 

“You don’t have to use a couch down here, I’ve got a guest room, you know.” She offered.

“I’ll be fine in the living room.” All the reasons it would be all right for him to sleep in a comfortable bed were overruled by the simple fact that he wanted it too badly. The idea of her just down the hall or around the corner was a fantasy he wouldn’t indulge.

“All right.” She wasn’t going to push. She’d given him enough trouble in the last twenty-four hours. “There is a full bath off the kitchen and I’ll---”

The ringing of a cell phone interrupted them. “I’m sorry. I have to answer this.” Nico said when he saw who was calling. “Just give me a few minutes.” He squeezed her shoulder and headed toward the dark kitchen, cell in hand. He still wanted to tell her about the financial retribution he was planning for Martello. It was necessary that she understand, that no matter her decision about the police, the man wasn’t getting off scott-free.

“Okay,” Dani murmured and slumped back onto the couch. She could hear the gentle hum of his voice in the distance; just knowing he was near soothed and relaxed her.

“Marshall,” he answered. “I was going to call you shortly.”

“Making any progress on the Santino problem?” Pittman leaned back in his desk chair and puffed on a large cigar. A crystal glass of forty year-old Bowmore single-malt sat at his elbow.

“All evidence points to Danny Martello. He has a gambling problem and lost big on Saturday. Dr. Santino happened to be there the night his temper boiled over.” It was a short neat version of what had happened and would prevent any speculation about the doctor and Terrance.

“What are you going to do about it?” Marshall sipped his whisky and grinned. Nico’s answer would tell him a lot.

“I’ve already called a meeting for tomorrow to cut him off from any further business with the Hawks and would like you to use your influence around town to do more of the same. His club is a draw for local sports figures and the younger Broadway crowd.”

“How’s he going to pay his bookie if he’s left high and dry?” The answer was simple: he wouldn’t, but Pittman wanted to hear his man say it.

“That isn’t my problem.” Careles glared out the darkened back window.

“I was beginning to think you’d lost your edge.” Marshall laughed. “I guess I was wrong.”

Nico shook his head at the other man’s glee over Martello’s possible misfortune. It had been over two decades since they had walked through jungles, deserts, and mountains, leaving death in their wake. Hurting another human being was never a casual thing, even in a time of war, whether it was declared or not. 

“Marshall, there is one other issue. Juliette called me this morning.”

“What have I told you?” Pittman’s voice was unyielding.

“It’s not what you think.” Careles defended the young woman he had been led to believe was his child for almost twenty years. “She’s following her twelve step program. One of the steps has to do with asking forgiveness and accepting responsibility.” 

“Yuh don’t say.” Marshall glared into the distance. “What the hell does she have to apologize to you about?”

“Because she asked, and I helped her a few months ago, when we both knew you wanted me to stay out of her life.” Nico closed his eyes and waited for the worst to happen. But he was done playing games. He wasn’t hiding any longer. He needed to be accountable, too. It had been pointed out to him recently that a lie of omission was still a lie.

“I wondered who finally convinced her to go to rehab.” Pittman loved his daughter, but they had never gotten along. There was a message on his cell from her that he’d ignored, but been unable to delete. He was going to have to break his self-imposed rule and listen to it.

“I can’t take the credit. It was Dr. Santino who advised me that Juliette would never change, unless she had to live with the consequences of her actions.” Nico leaned against the kitchen sink, watching the trees sparkle as they were covered in ice. The unseasonably warm winter they’d been having had turned cold. The rain that had been pounding them all day had hardened into an ice storm. He knew exactly how those trees felt. He’d had to encase himself in ice to tell Juliette that he was done helping her. That he cared too much about her to stand by and watch while she ruined her life. 

“You told the head shrinker about my daughter!” Marshall growled and slammed his glass onto his desk hard enough to break it. Shards of fine crystal and rare, aged scotch from Islay, Scotland rained down on his hand, but he felt nothing. 

“Of course not. I told Dr. Santino about a friend who was drinking too much, and making bad choices with her life.” Careles had been given the perfect opening to take this a step further, and he wasn’t going to waste it. “But it might be a good idea if you and Mrs. Pittman talked to Juliette about seeing the doctor. Santino has already proven herself discrete, and substance abuse is one of her specialties.”

Pittman’s deep laughter reverberated against Nico’s ear, catching him by surprise. “Yeah, that might not be a bad idea.” Marshall couldn’t wait to hear about Gabby’s reaction to meeting her replacement in Careles’ life. He’d make it a stipulation in the reconciliation agreement that Gabrielle take Juliette to her first few sessions. His daughter would receive the additional help she needed, and his wife would get her final punishment for disloyalty.

“Marshall, I’m serious about this. Juliette sounded frightened. She said she was going to go to meetings but didn’t think it would be enough.”

“My kid isn’t afraid of a damn thing!” He snarled.

“Except disappointing you.” Nico spoke softly and distinctly. He knew she didn’t want to disappoint him, either, but that would only hinder his cause.

“You always were a sneaky bastard, Careles. Always knew how to take the kill shot.” Pittman leaned back in his chair. He knew he’d been played. He heard Nico’s unspoken thought, as if it had been yelled in his ear, but it was for Juliette, so he’d take it just this once. He watched scotch drying in a small pool, damaging the top of his massive teak desk and the sparkle of shattered glass reflected in the light. “I’ll make those calls for you tonight and take your suggestion about Santino under consideration.” Then he hit disconnect on his phone, tired of the conversation and tired of the tangle his life had become recently.

Marshall Pittman squinted at the broken shards on his desk. In seconds, they had lost their luster. He swept the mess roughly aside, knowing it could never be put back together, but his family? Was there still a chance? Did he even want to make the attempt? He puffed slowly on his cigar. There was nothing he couldn’t buy, but he’d discovered recently that buying people didn’t give him the satisfaction it used to. 

Gabrielle had been one of his finest and most expensive purchases. He’d wanted her from the moment Nico had introduced them and had gone about obtaining her, as he did all possessions. It was a safe, secure business deal. If his emotions had been involved, he wouldn’t have been able to sit back and watch the game he had forced his wife and best friend to play, keeping them near to one another but almost never allowing them to touch. It used to give him such a feeling of satisfaction, but now, it only left a bad taste in his mouth.  
……….  
Nico walked into the living room and found the doctor curled up on the sofa sound asleep. Her head was on the arm and her body was twisted at an odd angle.

“Dani,” he indulged himself and tunneled his fingers through her hair, pushing it back from her face. He’d tell her about his arrangements with Pittman tomorrow. She needed sleep more than further information about Martello.

“Just resting my eyes,” she muttered, the words tapering off into heavy breathing. 

“Right.” Nico smiled gently before picking her up and rearranging her more comfortably on the couch. She made small mewing noises of pleasure as her body was moved into a more relaxed position and he put a bright orange throw pillow under her head.

Ten minutes later he’d changed into a pair of sweatpants and a faded black Tee shirt. He brought his cashmere sport coat from the kitchen and covered Dani with the dark garment. His Glock was beside its holster on the coffee table with his phone, both within easy reach and he stretched out on the couch five feet away from Dani Santino’s sleeping form. He’d gotten his raincoat from the banister to use as a cover. It lay lightly over him, as he turned on his side in the dark living room. The coat would keep him warm enough, not as warm as the sport coat but he’d slept in far worse conditions. The woman across from him needed to be kept comfortable.

He’d been tempted to carry her upstairs to her bed, but the idea was too dangerous. Nico had gotten almost no sleep in the last forty-eight hours, and his control wasn’t what he would have liked. It would be too hard to leave her once he’d put her to bed. 

He closed his eyes and listened to the sounds of the old house settling around him. He could hear the tick of a clock in the distance, the click of trees as their frozen branches rustled together, the slight hum as the furnace turned on, and the low gentle sound of Dani breathing only a few feet away.

The last time he’d listened to a woman sleep from across the room it had been Gabrielle. He tried not to think of that night or that woman and the strange pull she’d had on him for years. Dani’s little sighs and her deep even breathing were fresh and clean compared to his memories of Gabby.

It felt good, right, and extremely dangerous to have her so close. It was only one night, he could stand it, he rationalized. It had been a long time since he’d taken a walk on the wild side, and for once, he wasn’t armed with a sniper rifle or compromising his principles for a night of pleasure with a married woman. 

Each time his eyes closed, he forced them open. He wanted to stay awake, to hear her breathe, to hear her move slightly in her sleep, to be as close as he could without invading her privacy, without getting so close he couldn’t trust himself. But, he’d been without rest for too long; it wasn’t a battle he could win. He fell asleep to the gentle cadence of her breathing and the thought that with her he felt clean, even if he wasn’t.  
……..

Twice during the night, Dani became restless and cried out. Both times, before she could waken, Nico was off his couch, weapon in hand, just in case, and by her side. He whispered gently to her and pulled his sport coat back over her shoulders, stroking her hair until his heart rate calmed and she slept soundly. Each time he told himself that he was guarding the wall that kept her safe. He could sit on that wall or even look over it, but never cross it.


	9. Stepping Stones

_Friday January 13, 2012 – Six days after TK was shot and 36 hours after Dani was drugged._

“Dani, wake up.” Nico crouched beside the sofa where she was sleeping. He was gripping a cup of coffee with both hands to keep from touching her. His Glock was in his holster at his waist, but he needed to stow it in the small weapon’s safe in his trunk before going to the stadium. He was dressed in his shirt and jeans from the day before. 

“Hmmm.” She blinked and gave him a dazzling smile. She’d been dreaming about him, and there he was. But in her dreams, he hadn’t looked so serious and...

“Dr. Santino, wake-up,” he put more grit into his voice and moved to sit on the coffee table in front of her.

“Ohhh boy,” she muttered and sat up, as reality crashed in around her. “It wasn’t a dream. I mean it was, but not that part.” She shook off the feeling of warm intimacy, of Nico whispering words she couldn’t remember as he stroked her cheek and his fingers tangled in her hair.

He tilted his head to the side and let the corners of his mouth curve upward. Even disheveled and half-awake, she drew him in like no other woman he’d ever met. In a moment of pure indulgence, he reached out to straighten her sweater. The oversized V-neck had slipped down her arm. He clasped the wool and pulled it slowly to her shoulder. The tip of his thumb dragged against sleep warmed skin. 

“Uhhh…” She licked her lips and forced her eyes wide open, unsure if she was still asleep. He hadn’t meant to touch her like that…she was sure…but this was Nico; he didn’t do anything by accident. Dani shook her head to clear away the mists of what was and what she wanted. “I…uh…didn’t dream what happened at Solstice, did I?” she clarified; sure all the rest was a result of an adrenaline crash and wishful thinking.

“Nope, ‘fraid not. Drink this.” He passed her the mug of coffee and watched carefully as she took her first sip. He wished he could erase the reality and replace it with something as simple as a bad dream, but he couldn’t, so he’d brought her caffeine to make her morning easier.

“Mmmm that’s good, thanks,” she moaned appreciatively, missing the way he swallowed at the sound. She watched him over the rim of her cup. In the light of day, she was embarrassed. “I fell asleep waiting for you to finish your call? Sorry about that.”

“You’d had a rough day.” He shrugged and leaned forward. His knees touched the cushion where her legs were curled beneath her body. “Are you awake, Dani?” He looked her over carefully.

“Yeah. What’s up?”

“I need to get going. One of the Pittmans may be contacting you in the next day or two, about seeing their daughter, Juliette, as a patient. If they do, I would consider it a personal favor if you would help.”

“Sure, I’ll make time for her.” Dani was surprised. Usually when Nico wanted her to see another of Marshall Pittman’s people he put it in the form of an order, a polite order, but an order non-the-less. This time he asked.

“Oh, and leave my name out of it.” He watched her carefully as she nodded in acceptance. “A couple other things. First, I’ve got something for you.” He took his sport coat off her lap, where it had fallen when she sat up, and pulled a slim wallet out of the inside breast pocket.

“Thanks for the that, by the way.” She nodded toward the coat.

“You’re welcome.” He smiled and handed her a card from his wallet. “Call this number and make an appointment.”

“Wait…who is Francis Ignatius Carmichael?” She shoved her hair out of her eyes, studying the card for more information, but there was only a Washington Heights address and phone number. “Ya know, that’s not the best part of the City.”

“I know.” Nico could picture the gym in the old warehouse not far from Columbia Presbyterian Hospital. He worked out there regularly, and once a week he took his firearms into the soundproofed rooms in the back, which were made into an obstacle course. It made the FBI’s Hogan’s Alley look like a walk in the park. “Iggy teaches self-defense. Use my name, and he’ll take you on. Tell him to send the bill to The Hawks.”

“No!” She was getting tired of having her life managed. “I pay my own bills and I have had a women’s self-defense class.” She remembered taking it two years ago. The instructor had been eye candy, and she and Jeanette had gone out for drinks after each session. It had been fun.

“I’m sure, but Iggy is the real deal, not some Long Island Country Club instructor.”

Santino sputtered and Nico knew he’d guessed correctly.

“Dani, I know what you’re going through.” He patiently took her hand and held it in both of his. “You feel powerless. I’m trying to help. Rationally, we both know that all the self-defense classes in the world wouldn’t have helped once you had the first swallow of Rohypnol-laced Pellegrino, but right now, you need to feel strong and safe.” He wrapped her fingers around the card. “Iggy can help you. And the Hawks will be paying for it.”

“All right,” she whispered. They were inches apart. She could see the tiny flecks of green in his hazel eyes. They were too close, and she knew it but couldn’t seem to pull away. She hoped he couldn’t read her hidden secrets like he did everyone else’s. Though, why should she be different? For one second, his eyes turned smoky. He squeezed her hand and then slowly pulled back, let go, and stood up.

Nico took a moment to send a quick text. “Okay, now Iggy is expecting your call and knows whom to bill.” He put on his sport coat and draped his overcoat over his arm. “The rain turned to an ice storm last night. Xeno and Kevin are running late due to multiple accidents on the bridges, but will be here soon. Ben Tiller is in a car outside. I know you have errands. Let him be your driver today. He’s a little in awe of you, so don’t give him a hard time; he’s a good kid with good instincts, and he’s there to protect you.”

“No, I can take…” Before she could get any further, Nico leaned across the couch, one hand dug into the cushion beside her head and two finger of his other hand pressed lightly against her lips. She caught a quick glimpse of dark and stormy eyes in the instant before they turned cool and unreadable.

“Just. This. Once. Do. Not. Argue. With. Me. Until all the loose ends are tied up, I need to know that you are safe.” 

“Okay,” she whispered as she was hit with a wall of passion that took her breath away. Who was this man, and what had he done with the usually unflappable Nico Careles? Before she could come up with an answer or even phrase a question, she was left sitting in her living room, wondering if she’d dreamed it all.  
……..  
Intellectually, Dani was glad Ben Tiller was driving as he negotiated the icy roads between her home in Manhasset and the outskirts of Queens, where the Woodlands, home of the Hawks, was located. But the part of her that was desperate for control wanted to shove him out of the car and take over. 

“Thanks, Ben. I hope this doesn’t take too long.” She frowned as they pulled into a parking space. “I don’t know why Nico didn’t tell me about this meeting before he left.” She complained. It had messed up her day. She should have been having a session with Terrance at the hospital in the City, by now.

“The Boss has his reasons.” Tiller shrugged. Up close, Dr. Santino wasn’t nearly as intimidating as her reputation had led him to believe, though he was still taken aback that she’d question Mr. Careles orders. 

“The Boss, huh…I bet he just loves that,” she mumbled with irritation under her breath, making Ben cringe and want to cover his ears.  
………..  
Dani’s heels clicked across the lobby and down the hall, as she headed for the comfortable auditorium where the team viewed game films. She was aware her boots were an unwise choice since the ice storm, but she needed the extra height that four-inch heels with internal platforms gave her. Her coat and purse were over one arm, and she held a travel mug filled with coffee in her other hand. She’d worn black wool slacks and a merino turtleneck with a geometric print in bright shades that bled from red to deep purple. Dangly white-gold earrings swung against her jaw and matched a set of bangle bracelets on her right arm. Dani knew she was probably over dressed, but looking her best was the armor that helped her face the day. If anyone commented, there was always the excuse of appointments in the City. 

“I see you made it.” Matt Donnelly caught up with her and matched his longer stride to her shorter one. “Wow, you look great, really great.” He whistled under his breath as his eyes traveled up and down her body.

“Heading into the City after the meeting.” She shrugged away his comment and tried not to squirm at the way he was watching her. “Appointment with Terrance.” 

“How about you and I have dinner tonight. It’s a shame to waste that outfit on TK. There’s a new steakhouse that opened up not far from here.” Donnelly knew she had backed off in the days following the shooting, but he had wanted her for a long time and had come so close to his objective.

“Matt, no, I meant what I said that morning at the hospital.” They rounded a corner and she slowed to let him pass, but he stopped by her side. Her instinctive reaction was to step backward and was surprised to feel her shoulders hit the wall.

“Gees, Dani, you can’t expect me to just give up? I mean one minute we were…”

“Yes, I know,” she whispered furiously. A light blush tinted her cheeks at the memory. “I was there, too?”

“You sure were.” He gave her a lazy smile and leaned in her direction, remembering how her right breast had filled his hand.

“Dr. Santino, what are you doing here?” A dark look passed over Nico’s face. He discovered the pair at the top of the stairs that led to his basement domain. Donnelly had cornered the doctor in a small section of crooked hallway, and she didn’t look comfortable.

“Hey, man.” The trainer frowned. He hadn’t wanted to be interrupted. 

“I was told there was a mandatory staff meeting.” Dani cut in between the two men. “If Matt hadn’t called me, an hour ago, I would have missed it.” Her left brow rose and she glared at Nico accusingly. She didn’t miss that he’d changed into a slim fitting black suit and a dark shirt. A tiny part of her mind wondered where he hid his weapon in that outfit.

“You don’t need to be here.” He spoke carefully. 

“I’m no longer on staff?” Her eyes were large and doubting.

“Of course you are.” His usually cool expression softened, giving support the only way he could with Donnelly as their audience. “But you already have the information that is going to be covered in this meeting.” 

“I do?” It took a moment before realization dawned. “Oh…ohhh,” she sighed and rocked back slightly as the full impact of what he was saying hit her. Dani was glad for the wall at her back. It made it appear as if she was simply leaning casually against it, instead of fighting for balance. Then the colors spinning in front of her eyes cleared and she straightened. “Maybe I can…”

“No. I’ve got it covered,” he assured her.

“I know, but…” she wanted to help; she really did. It was her job to help the team over bumps in the road, and she needed to make herself useful to somebody.

“You’ve got things to do.” Nico never took his eyes off hers as he spoke. She was looking better than she had when he’d left her that morning, but the fancy clothes and make-up didn’t fool him. Dani Santino was a long way from being her normal self and this little tête-à-tête, wasn’t helping any. 

“I want to help,” Dani’s voice broke slightly, but her chin rose, and the hand holding her coffee was no longer shaking.

“It’s not neces--”

“What the…hell…is this all about?” Matt broke in. He felt like he was watching a tennis match, as the conversation volleyed between Santino and Careles. The head trainer heard the words they were saying, but instinct told him there were layers and layers that the other two were conveying with only their eyes and body language. 

“You will find out, right alone with everyone else. In. The. Meeting.” Nico shifted gears and stared the younger man down. He was standing with his feet shoulder width apart and his hands stuffed into the pockets of his slacks. It was an old habit that allowed him to appear relaxed, when in reality he could spring into action, faster than he could blink. It amused him that others underestimated his abilities while he was annoyed because it wrinkled his suit coat and ruined the lines of his pants.

“Matt, go on in.” Dani smiled. The muscles of her face moved appropriately, but anyone who knew her well could see it was an act. “We’ll be there in a second.”

“Sure, sure thing.” Matt grinned, relieved that things were back to normal. Now if he could only convince Dani to go out with him again. “I’ll call you later about dinner.”

“No, don’t bother. I’m not going out with you.” She turned away from him and glared at Nico. “You. Come here.” She moved down the hall, away from the door of the meeting, so she could speak to him privately. She squinted at the other man who was giving her trouble. “Why don’t you want me in there?”

“Do you really want to watch me tell the entire Hawks’ organization that Solstice is off limits and why?” He challenged.

“Uhhh…you’re not going to use my name are you?” The question rushed out in one breath.

“I gave you my word.” He was angry that she doubted him, but hid it behind his usual cool mask.

“I’m sorry.” She reached for his arm but realized she didn’t have a free hand. Her eyes fluttered closed in defeat. “I’m so sorry, I don’t know why I said that. I know you would never…I was caught off guard.”

He saw her furtive gesture and took her cup from her hand, freeing her to touch him if she chose. “That is just why I wanted you out of the…meeting.” He almost stumbled over the last word as he felt her lightly pat his chest. 

“Please, Nico. I can do this.” Her dark shadowed eyes met his, and he carefully weighed the pros and cons in his head.

“Okay.” He gave in. “But there are conditions. You take a seat in the back of the room, close to the door. You’re free to leave anytime, if the meeting runs late.”

She nodded, realizing he was giving her a way out if she felt overwhelmed.

“I’m not done. You stay out of it unless I indicate otherwise.”

“All right, let’s get going.” She took her cup back from him, straightened her shoulders, and ran her tongue over her lips to be sure she hadn’t worried away her lipstick. “Do I look okay?”

Nico’s eyes sparkled and changed from hazel to smoke, as he slowly took in every detail from the top of her head, the curve of her cheek on down to the tips of her soft leather boots. “I’m sure Donnelly gave you his opinion.” It was snide, and he was sorry the second the words left his mouth, but he was damned if he’d tell her how fantastic she looked.

“Stop that.” She elbowed him in the side. “I wasn’t fishing for a compliment. Can I fool them? Do I look normal?”

He wrapped both hands around her upper arms to keep her from rushing away. Doubt and impatience settled across her features, but he still didn’t let her escape. “You look like you’re loaded for bear. As to fooling them,” he nodded toward the door five feet away. “Matt didn’t notice anything different did he?” Nico figured the head trainer knew her better than anyone, himself excluded. If he hadn’t seen anything amiss, no one would.

“Matt isn’t always very perceptive,” she sighed as he led her toward the auditorium.

“He’s a fool,” Nico whispered as he opened the door for her.

Dani shrugged since she couldn’t deny it and was very tired of the subject. “Did you know that Ben Tiller calls you boss?”

“Of course.” He looked at her as if to doubt Ben’s opinion was ridiculous and was rewarded when she giggled. That was how she stepped through the door, laughing at something he said. The coach and players had seen it so often they didn’t give it a second thought. Life at the Woodlands was as normal as it could be with one of the players in the hospital with a bullet wound or two. Not even Matt Donnelly took exception, though he watched them closely. He’d never understood Careles’ humor but knew that Dani did and often took great joy in baiting the serious head of security.

Nico brought the meeting to order and gave them a thumbnail sketch of what had happened and the news that Solstice was off the list of approved clubs. There was some complaining, but things went smoothly until Randall Boozier stood up to ask a question.

“Yes, Randall?” Nico looked at the huge man who almost never said a word unless spoken to. He wondered if his meeting was about to go to hell.

“Mr. Careles, the lady, is she all right?” 

Dani felt her stomach tighten. Boozier had suffered from obsessive-compulsive disorder all his life, but it had gotten much worse when his brother was sent to prison. The big man felt an unnatural sense of responsibility toward the people around him.

“She had a scare but wasn’t harmed.” Careles looked toward the doctor, unsure if this was serious enough to bring her forward. He hadn’t been fooled by the way she dressed. She’d worn her clothes like protection for going into battle, and her make-up like war paint. It had been the reason she’d asked if she was looked all right. He didn’t want to call attention to her unless it was absolutely necessary.

“She gonna see Dr. D?” Boozier pushed further.

“Randall,” Dani called from the back of the room and suddenly felt everyone staring at her. Her hands began to shake so she moved down the aisle to the only safe spot in the room: right beside Nico.

“You know about doctor patient confidentiality?” She was Dr. Santino, now. Her shoulders back and head held high, though even in her boots, her chin barely came to Nico’s shoulder. “All of you know about that.” Dani addressed the whole room from beside the head of security. “So there isn’t much I can tell you.”

“She gonna be all right? You gonna take care of her like you do us?” Randall persisted.

“The woman involved has requested anonymity. The thing you can do, as a team, to help her is to give her privacy to work things through and to take care that nothing like this happens to your wives, girlfriends or family. I will tell you she has a therapy appointment this afternoon. I think she’d want you to know, if it puts your minds at ease.”

“Then she gonna be just fine.” Boozier’s huge grin split his face and he sat down to others muttering in agreement. 

“Yes, I think she will be.” Nico added his soft encouragement for her ears only.

“Yeah, she’s getting there.” Her eyes sparkled, pleased that she was able to do this one thing that felt almost normal. No one questioned whom the appointment was going to be with. Dani squished a fleeting moment of guilt. She had pulled one of Nico’s tricks: told the truth but had not been completely honest. “I don’t think you need me anymore.”

He nodded silently. Of course he didn’t need her. He didn’t need anyone. It calmed the players that she’d been here, but they would have listened to him, too. Though, Dani was up the aisle and putting on her coat before Nico’s internal tectonic plates settled enough to continue. “Security will be holding mandatory self-defense classes for all female employees. I highly suggest that players urge your wives and girlfriends to take part.”

“Yeah, but not on the same day, can’t have the wife meeting the honey.” Someone called to raucous laughter as the door closed behind Dani. She still had a full day and it was getting late.  
………..  
Her session with TK was difficult. The wide receiver was angry. He’d picked a fight with Vivica the night before, and she’d stormed out. Dani caught all his animosity and frustration. She walked out of his room unsure if she hadn’t made things worse and with a throbbing headache.  
…………

Ben Tiller and Dr. Santino stopped at a small coffee shop around the corner from Columbia Presbyterian Hospital, where TK was recuperating, for a late lunch. 

Ben watched Dani push her salad around her plate as he hungrily ate a cheeseburger and fries. “Ya know, Doc, you really should eat something.”

“I am,” she insisted. When he looked pointedly at her plate, she put down her fork and stared into Ben’s his cool brown eyes. What was it about all these guys Nico had working for him? They seemed to have eyes in the back of their head and a sixth sense. “Okay Tiller, truth time.” She squinted. ”Are you my driver-slash-bodyguard or babysitter?”

“Dr. Santino? I’m just trying to help. You’ve been through a lot. It’s my job to make sure I return you to Mr. Careles in at least as good a shape as you were in when he handed you off to me.”

“What do you mean?” She was so angry she was almost vibrating. Ben finally understood why his boss had been so casual the day before. The doc may have a temper and speak her mind, but when she was royally pissed, she was kinda cute. Though he’d bet money that if she weren’t so frazzled around the edges she could hold her own with about anyone but Careles; no one got the better of the Boss.

“Ma’am, please.” He needed to placate her before she took off like a rocket. “We both know that Xeno and Kevin didn’t get to your house until almost ten. The only reason I made it on time was because I live in Queens and didn’t have to worry about traffic, ice, and accidents on any of the bridges or tunnels. They live in the City and had to go up through Westchester to get there, things were so bad. The guys work as quickly as they can, but like as not, your security system won’t be up and running tonight. The Boss has been taking nights, since we’re spread so thin.”

“That’s not what I meant.” Though it caught Dani by surprise that she was going to have a houseguest again that night. Thank goodness Lindsey and Ray Jay were still with their dad in the Hamptons. Ray and his brothers had an annual family get-together after the holidays that included wives, kids, and pets. This was the first year she hadn’t gone. “Ben, how much of what we do…what I do or don’t do is getting reported to…er…the Boss? And…and…” Her eyes swam with tears that she refused to let fall. “And are you wearing a gun because of me?”

With one simple question, Ben Tiller felt his heart bump to life. He’d forgotten there were women like her in the world, women who cared about others more than themselves, who were tough and strong at the same time as they were soft and sweet. “First of all, Ma’am, I’m not armed. But make no mistake, I would and could be if it were necessary. After I served in Afghanistan, I spent a year with the FBI in The Executive Protection Detail. Got tired of working with all the suits.” He flashed her an ironic grin, since his boss wore suits but wasn’t what Ben would call ‘a suit’. “One thing I learned at the Bureau was that your protectee has got to trust you. So, if you’re askin if I’ll report back that you’ve had six cups of coffee and only two bites of your spinach salad all day, or that when you walked out of Terrance King’s room you looked as if someone had been pounding on you for an hour, then Ma’am, you don’t have to worry. It’s just between the two of us.” He didn’t bother to add that Careles was more observant than anyone he’d ever met. He would know her day hadn’t gone well.

“Thank you.” Dani smiled and forced herself to eat a little bit more.

“You’re welcome.” Ben went back to eating, but he couldn’t help wishing that he was older, smarter, more a man of the world. The Doc was way out of his league, but he decided right then and there that, orders or no orders, he’d keep a special eye on her. She deserved only the best.  
……………  
While they finished up their lunch, Nico was parking his car in front of Club Solstice. It was time he had another chat with Danny Martello.

“Yow, Mr. Careles, anything I can do for you?” Carl Thomas, Martello’s IT man, let him in the back door.

“Not really, Carl, though you were a big help yesterday.” He pulled two fifty-yard line seat tickets out of his inner pocket and handed them to the younger man. “These are for Sunday’s game. I thought you might like them.”

“Wow, game 2 of the play-offs. Thanks, my girl will love these.” He grinned with excitement. “You think we can beat San Francisco? Those damn Niners beat our asses last time around.”

“I’m always a Hawks fan.” Nico chose his words carefully.

“Me too, but with TK out, what are our chances?” Thomas wasn’t a betting man, but he would have loved to have some inside information to show off to his friends.

Nico simply looked at Carl. His brows were raised and his chin tilted slightly to the left. Without even thinking about it, Careles had put his hands in his front pockets and spread his feet shoulder width apart.

“Oh…Oh…sorry…I didn’t mean. I wasn’t trying to…” The tech blinked. He couldn’t understand how a man could look so nonchalant, while his eyes said something altogether different.

“I know, Carl.” Nico smiled at the flustered young man. “I came by to give you those and to see Mr. Martello again. Is he in his office?”

“No, Sir, he’s not. Danny’s running late today. He’s usually here by noon on a Friday. I can’t imagine what’s keeping him. It’s almost four.”

Nico pulled out a business card from his wallet and handed it to Carl. “Give him this and ask him to call me when he gets in.”

“Sure…no problem and thanks for the tickets.” Thomas was glad he’d been able to keep from shaking until after Careles left. The Hawks security man had a reputation. Most of it was rumor and innuendo, but a man didn’t get where he was if at least part of it wasn’t true. Carl had felt Nico change from friendly to warning in a split second.  
………..  
Dani made another appointment with Molly Decker, her therapist, for the following week.

“Dani, you’re recently divorced, have a new job, and a lot going on in your life. Someone putting a date rape drug in your drink is significant, but only part of the issues you’re having. If nothing else, you need someone to simply listen.” The tall redhead gave her professional opinion. “I can refer you to someone on Long Island, if you like, and save you the trip. With your busy schedule, driving into New York has got to be the last thing you want to do.” 

“I understand that this may take a while, but I like the idea of separating these sessions from my home life. The physical boundaries of bridges and tunnels are appealing. It’s been suggested that taking some self-defense classes will help me feel better, so I’ll be coming into the City for those, anyway. I’ll clump them together and occasionally treat myself to high tea at the Plaza.”

“The tea sounds like fun and the class is a very smart idea.” Molly agreed, as she turned and straightened the papers on her desk.

“May I use your powder room?” Dani felt frazzled and exhausted after going over what happened at Solstice with Molly. Despite Ben’s assurances that he wasn’t reporting back, she wasn’t taking any chances. Tiller was too observant. 

“It’s to the right. I’ll meet you in the waiting room.”

“Thanks.” Santino really just wanted a few seconds to regroup, after her session with Decker. 

A few minutes later, when Dani entered the waiting room, Nico was holding Dr. Decker’s blazer as she slipped into it. “Thank you, Mr. Careles.” The statuesque redhead appreciated his manners.

“Nico,” he automatically corrected. Dr. Santino’s therapist was a tall, smart, well-dressed woman, the kind he usually found attractive. It surprised him that she didn’t set off the smallest ping on his radar; possibly, it was her professional demeanor. 

“Nico, what are you doing here?” Dani was very glad she’d taken a moment to straighten her hair and make-up, though she was unsure why because he had seen her at her worst, many times. 

“It was time to send Ben on his way.” He watched the two women and wondered why he found the shorter, smaller one, with passion and complications so much more desirable than her counterpart. It was out of character for him. 

“Dr. Molly Decker, this is Nico Careles.”

“We’ve already introduced ourselves.” Molly grinned at her friend.

“Nico is head of security for The Hawks and has been very helpful since Wednesday night.” That was an understatement, but Dani was not going into detail in front of him. It was one more thing to add to the list of things that was bothering her: a crush on a man who is in love with someone else. She was embarrassed to think it and wasn’t sure how she’d find the nerve to say it out loud. It sounded as if she were back in high school.

“I’m your back-up, Dr. Santino.” He reiterated, as he often did.

Decker watched the interaction between the man and woman. Something was going on, something deeper than a business relationship. It would be interesting to see what developed.

“’Night, Molly, and thinks for working me in today.”

“That’s what I’m here for.” The tall woman gave the shorter one’s hand a squeeze. “Drive carefully.”

“That’s what he’s here for.” Dani pointed at Nico, who only smiled. “You be careful on the roads, too.”

“Not to worry. My sister and her husband live in the City. I’ll be staying with her.”

“It was good meeting you.” Nico shook her hand, and he and Dani left.

Molly went back into her office and added a bit of information to her notes from Santino’s session.  
………..  
The trip from Manhattan to Manhasset took Nico almost three hours, in blowing snow and ice, caught in Friday night rush hour traffic. Dani fell asleep almost immediately. Soon after that, her head was resting against his shoulder. At the next red light, he pulled her closer so he could support her neck as well. She rubbed her nose against him and whispered his name. It took every bit of his concentration to keep them on the road, but he did it.


	10. The Voices of Reason We Forgot

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Warning** Some description of violence during war at the beginning of this chapter.
> 
> **Guest Appearance** Kate Beckett and Richard Castle have about four paragraphs of dialogue. After all, if there is a murder in Manhattan, who better to have on the case.

_4:30 AM – Saturday January 14, 2012 – one week since TK was shot_

The acrid scent of a spent fire tickled Nico’s nose. He turned over restlessly, trying to escape what he knew came next, but he wasn’t quick enough. Distant weapon’s fire echoed through his sleep. He heard men, women, and children screaming as they died. The huts around the mission hospital were no protection from bullets, machetes, and enraged soldiers. Their intel had been faulty. His team had arrived too late. A well-planned and organized rescue mission had dissolved into a clusterfuck. 

He gripped his rifle and sighted through his scope at the carnage that was taking place below him. Hundreds of rebels took revenge on the infidel and her followers. 

“Do it, Careles.” Pittman’s voice was a harsh whisper beside him. “Take the damn shot, or not, but we gotta regroup. Dying is one thing, but useless dyin’ is no way to go out.”

It was too late for the graying, female, medical missionary, whom they had been sent to evacuate before the tiny country burst into revolution. A huge man was slowly stabbing her while his compatriots held her down. His knife rose and fell to the sound of the woman’s screams, as he sliced into her pale skin, careful to hit only non-vital areas. 

Nico concentrated on his heart rate, his timing had to be perfect. He took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. His finger caressed the trigger, and he pulled gently once…a thousand feet away, the woman crumpled and was silent. He resighted and got off a second shot. Her tormentor’s head shattered into a mist of blood and bone. It had all happened in less than three seconds. The men around the dead woman reached for their weapons and exploded in anger. They had been deprived of their entertainment and their leader; someone had to pay.

The little village had already been under attack when they arrived, the civilians were being slaughtered. The SEALs had been ordered to take extreme care when dealing with indigenous personal. Command preferred this mission be rescue only. That all changed when Nico fired. The men around him took their cue from him and rained weapons’ fire and explosives down on the frenzied mob that was coming their way, but they were out-numbered and fifty klicks from their extraction point. There was going to be hell to pay.

The quick staccato vibration of plastic on wood pulled Nico out of his nightmare. He gulped in air and quickly wiped sweat from his brow. Moments, later he reached for his cell with one hand and his Glock with the other. Just in case….just in case, his mind repeated the warning.

“Careles,” he answered. His voice was as calm, as if he were sitting at his desk in the basement of the Woodlands, though his hands were shaking.

“Boss, it’s Tony.” The older man’s words were hushed so he wouldn’t be overheard. “Sorry to wake ya.”

“What have you got?” It cost the dark haired man to sound normal, contained, and in control, but it was what he did. It was how he kept himself sane when the memories returned.

“It’s not good. Got a tip yesterday that there might be trouble at Danny Martello’s, been staking out his condo ever since. About five minutes ago Solstice’s night manager went up and came out puking up his guts. Damn, the cops just arrived…in force.” Tony glared from his doorway-hiding place. “Gotta make myself scarce. I’ll get back to you when I have something solid.”

“Shit!” Careles muttered succinctly and leaned back against the couch in Dani Santino’s living room. He looked toward the fireplace and the last of the dying embers from the fire they’d had the night before. The scent had been his trigger. It was what caused his sleeping mind to spiral into the past. “Jesus.” He leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees. His weapon and cell gripped tightly in each hand, unwilling to let go of either until his mind cleared. He’d thought he’d left that problem behind years ago. Fireplaces had never given him an issue before. Hell, he used his regularly in the winter.

Stretching, he stood and headed for the shower off the kitchen. He had bigger worries than a few old dreams. If he were a betting man, he’d lay odds that Martello was dead. Tony’s call had complicated his day tenfold. 

After his shower, he inspected his image in the mirror over the sink. He picked up his razor and neatly shaved away his usual stubble. Nico was almost positive that before the day was over, he was going to have a visit from the cops. It helped to appear clean cut. If things were as bad as he suspected, he’d be near the top of New York finest’s list of people of interest. He’d seen Martello on Thursday and had been looking for him on Friday. Yes, he was going to be questioned. Shit!

He dressed quickly in his last clean shirt, a dark green button down, and pulled on his black jeans. With luck, Dr. Santino would be awake soon. He would be out of there as soon as Ben Tiller arrived. Hopefully, Tony would have more information before that. He didn’t want Dani hearing about Martello on the news, if it was as bad as he suspected.  
………..  
Dani came into the kitchen in jeans and her over-sized Hawks sweatshirt. Her hair was drying in damp tangles around her shoulders. This morning, she’d showered and put on a light touch of make-up, before facing her houseguest. It almost made her feel human, again.

“’Morning.” She yawned. “How’d you sleep?” She smiled, pleased that last night she’d slept in her own bed, without any dreams coming to haunt her. Nico made her feel safe, even if he’d insisted on the couch instead of the guestroom. At least this time she’d given him bed linens, a pillow, and a blanket. He didn’t have to make do with a throw cushion and his raincoat.

“Fine.” He figured it was the truth. His sleep had been uninterrupted until he’d been woken from his nightmare.

“Thanks for making coffee.” She poured some into the mug he’d left for her beside the machine. “What are you making?”

“Breakfast.” He chopped onions and went on to red peppers and mushrooms.

“You handle that knife like a pro.” She stood beside his shoulder, amazed at how fast he cut up vegetables into neat even slices. “Oh yeah, you said something about working at a salad bar?” She was fishing, and they both knew it, but it got her nowhere. 

He shrugged, letting her form her own conclusions. He’d gotten his skill with a knife at Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL training. He could do lots of things with it; chop veggies, dress game, filet a trout, or a person. His hand faltered, and he fought the pictures from his dream. He’d told himself he had only been trying to ease the woman’s suffering, but it didn’t work. It never had. Death was death, and he had delivered it, not only to the medical missionary, but to his team as well. Only Pittman and he had survived to get to the LZ, and he had been unconscious. Just because he was standing in a nice suburban lady’s kitchen, cooking her breakfast didn’t change a thing. He could kill as efficiently with a blade, a side arm, or rifle. In fact, he didn’t think there was a household tool that he couldn’t use to…”

“Nico?” Dani had been speaking his name, but he’d been far away. 

“Onions,” he whispered as his voice cracked, though the onions had been chopped a while ago. His mind had drifted to a different life, a different man, at least he hoped he was different.

“Okay,” she nodded, willing to accept his excuse for the moment. He’d given her space when she needed it. He deserved the same. “You want toast or an English muffin?”

“What have ya got to put on it besides butter?” He put the vegetables into the sauté pan with some olive oil and began breaking eggs into a bowl. He didn’t bother asking her how many she wanted. He was feeding her at least two.

“Honey, cinnamon sugar, and black raspberry jam.” She looked in the fridge to be sure the kids hadn’t finished up the last of the jam. “Ooops, I had black raspberry jam. One of the kids put the jar away empty.” She grimaced, unsure if she should be pleased Ray Jay or Lindsey had remembered to put the thing away or upset because they hadn’t bothered to check to see that it was empty.

“Still, a tough choice,” he grunted and added some seasoning to the eggs and began beating them with a wire whisk, until they were foamy. “You willing to share? We could split two muffins. Put honey on one and cinnamon sugar on the other. That way we each get both.”

“It sounds like a plan.” Dani separated the muffins and put them in the toaster. She quickly set the center island for two and poured orange juice. It was nice to have help in the kitchen. She brushed the thought aside, knowing this would never happen again.

A few minutes later, they were eating companionability across from one another. 

“Mmmm, that’s good.” Dani took another bite of her omelet. 

“It’s the dill that makes the difference.” He watched to be sure she was eating and not pushing her eggs around her plate. The night before, they’d picked up Ethiopian food and they’d had a floor picnic in front of the fire. She’d relaxed considerably, as dinner had progressed, but it hadn’t taken an expert to tell she’d hardly eaten all day and was still badly shaken from what had happened. This morning she was doing better. He wanted to be sure she was fed before he had to bring up Martello.

“I never realized the advantages of a man who could cook.” She smiled and sipped her coffee. He looked nice, sitting across from her in a casual dark green button down with sleeves rolled between his wrists and his elbows. “Somehow, it doesn’t fit the picture of the hardboiled head of security for the Hawks.” Then she remembered the gun attached to his belt, and the gentler image wavered and cracked.

“Even a hard boiled head of security has to eat.”

“And here I thought you had a restaurant for every night of the week. You sure know where all the good ones are.” She took a bite of honey covered English muffin and chewed before she went on. “You knew about Axims. A lot of people who live on Long Island don’t realize they can get good Ethiopian food this side of the East River. The kids and I love it.”

“I may live in Manhattan, but I work in the outskirts of Queens. It forces me to… uh…diversify? I’m glad I chose well. It was a toss up between steak from the new steakhouse that opened not far from the Woodlands or a local hole-in-the-wall with a menu that wasn’t quite so boring. Since you were sleeping soundly…” They both remembered how startled she’d been to wake-up with her head on his shoulder, as he double-parked in front of the restaurant. “I got to decide.” His eyes were laughing as he spoke. 

Dani was glad to see it. He’d looked…odd this morning. If he hadn’t already told her he’d slept well, she would have been sure he’d had a bad night.

“You,” she giggled and shook her finger at him. He was dissing Matt and she loved it. It made him human, but she was sure if she mentioned it, he would grow distant and cool. He hated to have people know there was another side to Nico Careles. “Oh, I meant to ask you last night, do you know what happened to my earrings from Wednesday evening? I found the plastic bag with my jewelry in my purse, but one was missing?”

“Dr. Browning took care of that.” As much as he’d wanted to help, he’d gotten as far as removing her bracelet and realized it was too intimate…too much like undressing her, so he’d stopped. “What did it look like?” He squinted and tried to remember, but he’d been too worried about her physical state to notice.

“It’s a three-inch, slinky, mesh triangle, covered with clear crystals.” She took another bite from her muffin and tasted honey and butter on her tongue. “Jeanette gave them to me before she left. They have more sentimental value than anything,” she sighed and licked honey off her fingertips. 

“I’ll check my car and loft.” He had a vague relocation of a cool weight brushing against his wrist, as he’d shielded her face so Danny Martello wouldn’t be able to recognize her. 

Nico kept on eating and tried not to look at her mouth. Protection shouldn’t carry the undertones of desire, but with her, he was helpless to prevent it. He was sure she would taste like honey, cinnamon, and coffee, with a trace of dill. It was a relief when his cell vibrated on the counter beside him. “I have to get his.” He picked up the phone and walked into the living room. “What have you got, Tony?” 

“Martello is dead. Someone shot him at close range with a large caliber whatever. My guess is a .45, ‘cause his brains were scattered all over the wall ten feet from where the body dropped.”

“Shit.” Nico rubbed his eyes and carefully looked out the front window. Ben Tiller was in his usual spot ten minutes early. “Have reporters picked up the story?”

“Nope, not yet, but cops and a meat wagon early on a Saturday morning in Midtown are drawing a crowd of joggers, so the vultures won’t be far behind. I got a friend at the 12th Precinct, who helps me out from time-to-time. His station caught the case. The detective in charge is still goin’ over the scene. The uniforms are keepin’ the place zipped up, but once they bring the body out, there will be no keepin’ it quiet.”

“Keep me posted.” Nico’s day had been shot to hell, and he was going to have to do the same to Dani’s, before she heard it on the news.  
……

“Marshall Pittman should keep to civilized hours.” She grinned at him as she cleared their dishes.

“That wasn’t Marshall.” Nico had grown cool and serious in the few minutes he’d been on his cell. Dani blinked at the change in him. With one call, his softer side was gone. She wondered if it had ever really been there or if she had imagined it because she’d wanted that part of him to exist.

The silence in the room and the way he was intently watching her made fear creep along her spine. “What’s wrong? What’s happened?” 

“Dr. Santino---”

“Are Ray Jay and Lindsey all right?” She cut him off. Maybe if she said the words it would make them untrue.

“They’re fine. As far as I know, your children are fine, Dani…” He reached for her hand across the island. Once again, she was being dragged into the darker side of his world, and she didn’t belong there. “Danny Martello is dead. It happened late Thursday night, or early Friday morning.”

“What?” The words bounced against her eardrums. She listened to them echo over and over again until they finally made sense. The man she remembered from Solstice was young, somewhere between her age and Nico’s. He couldn’t be dead.

“Danny Martello---”

“I…uh…heard…you,” her voice broke and she closed her eyes, suddenly feeling light headed. “I just didn’t understand…”

“Dani?” Nico called out, as he moved quickly to her side. She’d gone white as a sheet. With one arm around her waist, he helped her to one of the island stools, pushed her head down between her knees, and crouched beside her to keep her from falling.

Their conversation from Thursday night raced though her head. Martello had been gambling. He owed a lot of money to someone…someone…and Nico was here at her house wearing a gun. It clicked into place and she began to shiver.

“He was killed,” it wasn’t a question but a certainty. 

“According to a very reliable source, yes.”

“How?” She tightened her hands on his shoulders and buried her face against his skin. 

“Dani, you don’t---”

“I do need to know,” she insisted.

“He was shot.” Nico hated that a week earlier he’d used the same words about Terrance. At least their friend was still alive.

“Jesus.” She hugged him tighter, and he returned the embrace. It wasn’t something between friends, but neither of them would admit it was anything else. 

“I’m okay now,” she mumbled against his neck. He knew she wasn’t, but keeping her close was too dangerous, so he helped her sit up and took a step back. “Does this have anything to do with what happened to me? Is it why you’re wearing a gun?”

Nico felt as if a bucket of cold water had been dumped over him. How could she hold him like she had, if she thought he was involved? All the while a tiny voice, he refused to listen to, whispered in his ear, ‘run away to fight another day. It’s what we do in the SEALs’. It’s what had cost him Gabrielle before she met Marshall. It was what he was doing now by looking for hidden meaning in Dani’s honest question.

“Dr. Santino, if you want to know if I killed him or had him killed, you should ask, not beat around the bush.” His eyes had gone almost black, not the smoky she’d been seeing lately, but dark cold holes in his face. “Especially since I went to such pains to be sure you knew I was capable of doing so.”

“That’s just crazy,” she exploded off her chair and backed him against the far counter, catching them both by surprise that she could move, so quickly, so soon. Dani dug her nails into her palms to keep from shaking him silly. How could he think that she’d doubt him? “That wasn’t what I was asking and you know it. Stop trying to twist my words. I know you didn’t kill him.”

“How do you know that?” He pushed. He was angry that she would have such faith in him. It was underserved. He couldn’t deny that the thought had crossed his mind, while waiting for the results of the rape kit from Dr. Browning, though he hadn’t known who or where to point his anger. When the tests were negative, and he knew she hadn’t been touched, simply drugged, his focus changed. Her safety became paramount. He liked to think he’d left the adrenaline-driven Navy SEAL behind him over two decades ago, but last night’s dream lingered, maybe that part of him was still there just under the surface, waiting for an appropriate trigger. If the tests results had been different…he didn’t like to think about the ramifications for either of them.

“I just know,” she insisted, though he’d grown strangely silent.

“Not good enough.” He glared. He wanted to shake her confidence, as much for his peace of mind as for her safety. She was too damn naïve, and his world was too dark. If she was going to live and work in the buffer zone between, which was the Woodlands, she needed to understand a few facts of life.

“Okay then, you said it was Thursday night or early Friday? Well I was on the sofa not five feet away from you. You couldn’t have gotten out of the house without me knowing about it.”

He simply smirked, his eyes dark and unreadable like he was laughing at some private joke. It made her feel young and stupid. 

“Stop that,” Dani yelled and gripped the front of his shirt. “Just stop it.” Her eyes filled with tears and she knew she was going to break if he didn’t stop pushing her, and then she saw it, a flicker of…some…deep emotion…worry, guilt, she wasn’t sure what. It happened too quickly.

“Dr. Santino, you seem to have forgotten who you are dealing with.” He tipped his chin to the left and stepped into her, throwing her off balance. All that kept her from falling were her hands digging into his shirt and the tight hold he had on her waist. Part of him was furious that she would put blind trust in a man like him. The other part was fighting a battle to keep from lowering her to the floor of her neat suburban kitchen and showing her exactly how bad a downtown man could be.

“I…” she gulped. Then she remembered Jason Coogan and how Nico had protected him. A shadow of doubt made her shake her head, trying to deny a partially formed idea that was fighting it’s way to the surface. “I...just…do…but,” her whisper was hoarse with dread.

“Ask it. Go ahead and ask the next logical question.” He goaded her, “Come on Dr. Santino, ask the question!”

“Did you know how this would end? Wasn’t there something you could do to stop it?” Her words were like slivers of ice that shot into his chest. He could read the doubt that filled her eyes. He’d wanted it there but hadn’t expected it to cut so deeply.

“I knew Martello was playing games with a very dangerous man, a man to whom he owed a great deal of money, a man not known for his patience, but we discussed all that the other night.”

“Could you have saved him?” she gasped.

“His death was set in motion long before I became involved, long before Danny put that drug in your drink.” Nico dragged her back to one of the stools and forcibly sat her there, before taking two steps back. “Martello knew whom he was dealing with. His only real chance, when he got in so deep, was to turn state’s evidence and hope for the best.” 

Dani shook her head, exhausted and disheartened. “Help me understand. How is he different from Jason Coogan? That’s not the advice you gave him.”

“Jason is the son of a personal friend and came to me for help. Martello is nothing to me.” He folded his arms, putting a wall between them. He was damned if he was going to explain the difference between the men Jason was indebted to and the one Danny Martello was stupid enough to use as a bookie. That was more information than she needed. “When I talked to him, he denied any culpability, wasn’t the least bit sorry for what happened, and didn’t in any way seek my assistance or advice.”

“So you just--” Dani tried to interrupt, but he kept right on going.

“I’m not finished.” He glared at her. “I’m not a mind reader. As you saw, the evidence I had against him was purely circumstantial. As much as I believe he was the one who drugged you, there is the possibility he didn’t. Recently, I’ve been a bit busy, taking care of people I’m directly responsible for. I can’t be expected to wrap protective packaging around every one who lives in the five boroughs, to save them from their own stupid actions. I don’t have the manpower or the inclination.” He was being unnecessarily cruel. It was out of character. He blamed it on the return of his nightmare and the almost obsessive need he had to protect the doctor from the world he lived in.

Nico reached for his sport coat on the back of his stool and slipped into it. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have business to attend to elsewhere. Ben Tiller is outside if you need anything. Xeno and Kevin will be along shortly. If for some reason your security isn’t up and running by tonight, I’ll arrange for Ben to stay.” He picked up his go-bag and headed for the door.

“Nico, wait,” she called after him.

"I've waited long enough. There is nothing more to discuss, Dr. Santino." When he closed the door behind him he was spared the sight of Dani laying her cheek between her arms and sobbing in frustration while she beat her fists against the counter. Her momentary temper tantrum only made her feel worse. As her mind whirled, she forced her body to relax and rested her forehead and hands on the cool marble in front of her. She was confused and hurt. Nico could fix anything, she'd been sure…she'd been so sure…why had he made her doubt him?  
………  
Nico was right. He was an hour into catching up with his paperwork when the reception desk phoned saying Detective Beckett and her partner were looking for him. He closed down his computer and took a deep breath. He’d had trouble staying focused all morning. That could not happen when he was talking to the detectives.

“Sue, have Herb bring them down. Tell him to use the tunnels,” he ordered as he reached for the tie he hadn’t bothered to put on when he’d changed into one of the clean suits that were in his office closet. He was having the police taken down the stairs in the lobby instead of the ones by the auditorium. They would go through the catacombs in the basement, and miss the heart of the facility: Coach’s office, Connelly’s training area, the locker room, auditorium, and lounge where players might be congregating. Tomorrow, The Hawks went up against the San Francisco Forty-niners. They didn’t need any distractions.

It took an hour, but the police were finally gone. Nico agreed to bring his .45 in for ballistics testing by Sunday at noon, since it was locked in his gun safe in Manhattan and he was working in Queens. He’d kept Dani’s name out of the conversation and he didn’t think Det. Beckett would bother them again. She was smart and already knew Martello was in financial trouble with the wrong person. Nico’s visit to Martello and the fact that he had a carry permit for the same caliber weapon Danny had been killed with was simply a loose end that needed tying up.  
………….  
Detective Kate Beckett sat in her car beside her partner, Richard Castle. They were stuck in traffic, going back to the City, on the Queensboro Bridge.

“What’s your take on Careles?” Kate asked as Castle rifled through the file they’d accumulated.

“Given his military record, he has the ability, but he didn’t do it.” He shook his head, shuddering slightly. “If he’d been our guy, no one would have ever found the body.” He told her earnestly

She nodded in agreement as she slipped into the next lane to make it a few feet closer toward Manhattan.  
………….  
Dani paced her house like a caged lion. After, once again, allowing Ben to drive when she met with Terrance in the City, she was at loose ends. She had wisely canceled a number of appointments for her practice. It had been a hard decision. Diving into other people’s problems helped her forget her own and was exactly why she needed to take time off. With the exception of Terrance, she’d cleared her professional schedule for a week.

She slumped in her desk chair and counted on her fingers. Four in the afternoon in New York meant it was ten at night in Barcelona. Dani tried for the forth time that day to call Jeanette. She really needed to talk to her, but her friend wasn’t picking up. The calls were being routed directly to voice mail. The first three times she left a message, the forth she hadn’t bothered. Unsure what to do next and filled with nervous energy, Dani rearranged her already neat desk. That was when a plain white business card caught her eye. “Damn,” she muttered and dialed the number on the card.

“This is Dr. Danielle Santino, I’d like to speak to Francis Ignatius Carmichael.”

“I go by Iggy. What can I do for you?”

“Nico Careles, suggested I get in touch with you…” Her voice gave out, and her eyes filled with tears. Damn that man for making her care about him and then cutting her to pieces with doubts.

“He told me to expect your call, Dr. Santino and that you’ve got a busy schedule. I’ll work you in. Not to worry about that.” He had a deep, rich, voice that reminded her of molasses on a warm summer day. 

“I’ve had a woman’s self-defense class already. I don’t want to waste your time.” She sighed softly. She really didn’t want to do this and refused to exam why. That was what told her it was necessary.

“The Lieutenant mentioned you’d had one of those girly excuses for a class. But this is different. You won’t be wasting my time. ‘Sides, if he thinks it’s necessary, then it is. The man can be a pain in the…uh…neck, but he’s usually right.”

“Lieutenant?” Dani muttered under her breath. Iggy sounded like he was another of Nico’s connections from the service. They all seemed to think and act alike, but she was still hurting from their argument and was tired of him managing her life. How dare he make her believe he was different…how dare he make her care…“He’s not always right,” the words flew out of her mouth before she could contain them.

“You go girl, fight back.” Iggy laughed, slow and deep. It sounded like it was coming from the bottom of a well-aged whiskey barrel. “He didn’t warn me you were a feisty one.” Not many women argued with the Careles charm. Carmichael was more interested than ever to meet Santino, though he was sure he knew what she looked like; at least 5’9”, model thin, and cool and calm as you please, though it sounded like this one had a bit of temper. Nico had never brought his female companions around for instructions, before. Iggy figured the Lieutenant liked to do his own instructing, and those women usually wouldn’t be willing to grace his sweaty establishment. Maybe this one was what the man had said she was, simply a member of the Hawks organization. “For the first few classes, wear comfortable clothes and a pair of sneaks. We’ll be doing a lot of work on the mat. After that, we’ll see how you progress.”  
……….  
Xeno and Kevin finished the work on her security system by four-thirty. Once they’d gotten all the new coaxial cable run, the job had moved along quickly. There were neatly mounted cameras, monitors and keypads in specific places throughout the house. 

Kevin was giving the doctor instructions on how to operate the system, when the front doorbell rang.

“Wait, Dr. Santino, check the monitor. It’s why the cameras are there. Do you remember the sequence?” he asked.

“I think I’ve got it.” Dani punched in some numbers and watched as a familiar blonde head and laughing face appeared on the screen in front of her. “It can’t...” she gasped and took off like a shot. “Jeanette?” Santino threw open the door and stared, afraid that if she reached out to hug her friend, she would discover she was hallucinating.

“Hey there, Romano, wanna go scope out some guys?” Jeanette laughed, using her greeting from high school.

“What…how?” Dani gasped and fell into Jeanette’s welcome embrace. “What are you doing here?”

“Someone called me Thursday evening,” she laughed, so glad to see Dani again. “He said he thought you needed some company.” She pointed to the driver of a black Lincoln that was backing out of the driveway.

“Nico?” she asked her friend. “He contacted you?”

“Yeah, Babe.” Jeanette smiled, though happy tears filled her eyes. “Mr. Tall, Dark, and Mysterious not only called, he arranged for my flight and wouldn’t let me pay for it.”

“His men call him boss, and I think it goes to his head.” Dani whispered, wanting desperately to talk to him, but he didn’t look back or slow down. In seconds he was around the corner and out of sight.  
……………

Later that night, Dani and Jeanette were curled up on Dani’s bed. Stories had been exchanged and repeated over a bottle of 2009 Nicole’s Vineyard Pinot Noir.

“You can’t ever tell Augusto, but I really miss California Reds.” Jeanette held up her glass between her eyes and the bedside lamp. “Spain has nothing like them,” she laughed softly.

“You’re in love with him aren’t you?” Dani leaned against her pillows and tried to relax.

“You know me, I have flings; I don’t fall in love. But if I did, yeah, it would be him.” Jeanette would tell her friend about the three-caret diamond ring that was in her purse, when things calmed down. Tonight was about Dani. 

“It’s all right. I’ll miss you like crazy, but you deserve your white picket fence and two point five children. If he’s the one who makes you happy, then go for it.”

“Ha…that would be a white picket restaurant, and children? I don’t know. We’d have to talk about it. I’ve never really understood how that point-five works.” Jeanette turned her head so she was facing Dani. “But since we’re talking about love, what about you?”

“What about me?” She shrugged. “Trainer-man was a one night stand that I tried to imagine was more. J.D. was fun, but no, there was no future there. After what happened the other night, I’m a little off men.”

“What about Mr. Tall, Dark, and Mysterious?” The blonde had been waiting all evening to ask that question.

“Nico?” Dani pulled back and wasn’t sure what to say. But this was why she’d been trying to call Jeanette all day. No one understood her like her friend, and she’d missed that.

“Yeah, Nico. I've known you a long time, Dani Romano Santino, and I've never seen you this twisted up and it's not just about what happened at Solstice. I read man trouble in your eyes, worse than when you tossed Ray the Bastard out. So if there isn't someone else out there you haven't told me about, then I gotta assume it's your knight in shiny black armor."

“That’s just it.” Dani shook her head. “Nico and I are friends of sort. We work together, and…well…there’s more. Yes, I think he’s attractive…I mean I could really….well… I don’t know…but…Aw hell, he’s in love with someone else and before he left here today, he did his best to make me hate him.” She blew out a relieved breath that she’d finally found the words to say what needed to be said.

“Hmm, very interesting. Now, Dr. Santino I think you need to put your therapist hat on and figure out what all that means.” Jeanette got up and stretched. “Sweetie, as much as I’d love to keep on talking, it’s four in the morning in Barcelona and I’ve been up for over twenty-four hours. Get some sleep and things will look better.”

“Night, Jeanette, I’m so glad you’re here.”

“Me too.”

After her she heard the guest room door close, Dani picked up her cell and contemplated the question Jeanette had posed, but no answer was forthcoming. She scrolled through the months of texts that had accumulated from The Hawks head of security.  
………  
Across the East River, on the island of Manhattan, in a loft on Bleecker Street in Greenwich Village, Nico Careles was reading his electronic copy of _The Keys To Rebecca_. It was a book he enjoyed, but he wasn’t sure why he’d chosen a Ken Follett he’d read before when he had a number of others, by other authors, waiting to be opened for the first time. 

He put his iPad on its shelf in his nightstand and picked up the earring he’d found buried under his pillow when he’d gotten into bed. He held it by the delicate hook that would attach it to a woman’s ear and shook it making the three-inch slinky triangle dance so the Swarovski crystals caught the light. It embodied the woman who owned it, sleek, shiny, delicate-looking but stronger than it appeared, and never his.

Nico’s cell pinged and he checked his messages. It was from Dani: ‘Why?’ 

He smiled slightly and contemplated her many-leveled question. “Because it is in your best interest,” he muttered. Before he could change his mind, he deleted the text, without responding to it. He put the earring and phone down and turned off his light.

He needed to sleep. Tomorrow was a new day and he was back to watching the world instead of participating in it. It was what he did best and no one got hurt.


	11. Moments Between Here and There

_Sunday January 15, 2012_

Nico stood beside the wall of windows in his dining room and watched the sunrise. His half-empty cup of espresso was on the table behind him, the fragrant brew left to grow cold, as he concentrated on the beginning of a new day. 

“Balance, it’s all about balance,” he whispered. He was taking a moment to realign his thinking. With shoulders and back straight he placed the palms of his hands on the cool glass that separated him from the outside world. It was what he had to do...what he wanted. When he wasn’t vigilant of the wall that allowed him to watch without participating, things and people slipped through. That could not be allowed to happen, not again.

With one more deep breath, he reached into his suit coat pocket to be sure he hadn’t left Dr. Santino’s earring in his bedroom. It needed to be returned to its owner to complete the circle and set him free. 

As his fingers stroked the cool crystals, he felt a jolt that only reinforced his commitment to let go of the remaining physical connection he had to her. With quiet resolve, Nico turned and left his condo. It was a busy day. The Hawks were going to play game II of the playoffs, and he had things to do.  
…………..  
On Long Island, Dani Santino woke slowly. She felt as if she’d just closed her eyes seconds ago, but it was almost eight, and she could hear the shower running in the upstairs guest bathroom. Jeanette was functioning on Barcelona time.

Dani reached for her cell on her bedside table, and she sat up to check for messages. There were no new ones. He hadn’t responded. As much as she tried to tell herself that Nico could still be sleeping, or busy, or whatever, she knew that if he were going to answer her question of “why”, he would have. She’d expected an evasive response, not silence. She would bet the man slept with his phone. She knew that he never ignored it. The fact that he had this time was painfully significant.

She slid out of bed and faced her tired reflection in the mirror. “Okay, girl, man up.” She squinted. “You’ve got enough on your plate without adding a guy who obviously doesn’t want to be there.” Dani nodded in determination and headed for her shower.  
………….

In the afternoon, Dani and Jeanette watched The Hawks beat the 49ers from the comfort of the Santino family room. It had been anybody’s game until the last ten seconds when Boozier intercepted a fumble on the Niners’ eight yard-line and ran it in for the winning touchdown.  
…………..  
That evening, when Lindsey and Ray Jay came home, Kevin O’Connell stopped by to give the entire family a run through on the security system. 

The Santino children were not pleased with the addition to their home. Lindsey was particularly vocal and didn’t wait until Kevin was out of the house to let everyone know exactly how she felt about it. The girl was convinced her mom was trying to spy on her. Not only were there cameras, but every time a door was opened, a quiet ping was heard throughout the house. Linds was sure it had been put there to keep track of her comings and goings. It was a conspiracy, and she refused to cooperate with anything that might curtail her social life.  
………….  
 _Monday January 16, 2012 – The Santino residence_

Dani woke to her cell phone ringing on her nightstand. She pulled the covers up around her as she reached for the phone and glared at the clock. It was 5:30 AM. 

“This had better be important,” she muttered, as she blinked and focused enough to accept the call. “Dr. Danielle Santino,” her words were gruff from sleep and anger.

“And so it is.” Marshall Pittman’s voice was smooth and casual as if he talked to her everyday. “Oh, sorry, did I wake you?” He leaned back in his desk chair and sipped coffee as he watched the lights of New York City in the early darkness. It would be at least another hour before the horizon lightened and the sky turned grey, silhouetting the buildings and bringing the City to life.

“Who is this?” She was tempted so simply hang up.

“Marshall Pittman---”

“Mr. Pittman, I’m off the clock. Please call back at a decent hour.” Dani was not going to let him bully her the way he seemed to everyone else.

“This isn’t business, but it’s important, so if you’d indulge me…since I’ve already woken you.” He leafed through the photos he had of Santino, some were from when Careles had run a background check on her, before she started working with King, some were more recent. She was a tiny morsel, more of a hors d’oeuvres than dinner. But he was sure Nico was enjoying every bite. “I must have made a mistake calculating the difference in time zones.” It was the type of lie he’d perfected to an art form, letting the other person fill in the blanks, as he led them wherever he pleased.

“Mr. Pittman, though we’ve never met in person, I am sure there are very few miscalculations in your life.”

“Touché, doctor.” He laughed in joy for the first time in a long while. The woman wasn’t afraid of him, and she was calling him on his game. “I can see why he likes you,” he muttered. 

“Pardon?” What was he talking about?

“The men like you, ya know: Coach, Donnelly, King, Shane Givens, Billy Rhodes, and of course Careles.” He stopped waiting for her to respond or give herself away. When she didn’t he continued. “I can see why they like you. I hear nothing but good things. Well, except from Laura Radcliff, but she doesn’t like to share the spotlight.”

“If you’re so pleased with my work, how about a raise?” She pulled her pillow behind her so she could lean against the headboard. He heard the rustle of sheets and wondered if Nico was lying next to her, running his hands over her tight body as she talked. It added something…a zing of excitement. Pittman had always been a bit of a voyeur and had no problems admitting it.

“All in good time.” He replied and let his mind wander to what he might have interrupted in her bed.

“Sir, please get to the point of this call. I have company and---”

“Doctor, you disappoint me. You’re a psychologist and you’re parading your boyfriend in front of your children?” He heard her sputtering in the background and smiled. “Though after what happened Wednesday night, I’m sure he makes you feel safe.”

Dani caught herself before her temper imploded. He was toying with her for some reason of his own. She wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of playing his game. “Mr. Pittman, what I do or do not do, on my own time is none of your business. Bye, now,” she huffed and disconnected the call. Her hands were shaking and she almost dropped the phone in surprise when it rang again. She was tempted no send it straight to voicemail, but at the last minute took the call.

“Dr. Santino.” She answered. 

“Do not hang-up.” Pittman growled. She was tough and tenacious and his name didn’t cause her to cave. Part of him liked that. No wonder Nico was attracted.

“Then don’t insult me.” She shot back.

“You’re not afraid of me are you, Dr. Santino?” It was an important question if she was going to be the one to help his daughter. Juliette had learned her skills of intimidation from him.

“No, I’m not.” She wasn’t, she insisted. The man welded a lot of power and she worked for him, but she was damned if she’d let one more man push her around. If he fired her, it would be difficult, but her practice was growing along with her reputation.

“That’s good, very good.” He spoke quietly, almost to himself. “I’d like you to see my daughter, Juliette, as a patient.”

“Uh…well…” she blinked at the phone, caught off guard. “Uh…before this goes any further, you need to understand that if I do, there will be complete confidentiality.” She was determined that he understood the rules from the start. It would only hamper the girl’s recovery if she was flipped from therapist to therapist.

“You’ve already proven to be discreet. I don’t think I have to worry about Juliette getting her face splashed all over the tabloids, because of you.” 

“You’re deliberately misunderstanding me.” Dani leaned her head in her hand, knowing that taking on Juliette Pittman was going to cause at least as much disruption in her life as TK did. But Nico had asked her. She would do it for him, no matter how angry she was with him. “I am talking about you and Mrs. Pittman. Anything your daughter tells me would go no further.”

“That would include Careles, as well.” Marshall pushed. 

“I assure you that if there were ever security needs regarding your daughter I would do my best to convince her to address them.” Dani faltered. She could hear Nico’s angry voice; I can’t be expected to wrap protective packaging around every one who lives in the five boroughs, to save them from their own stupid actions. I don’t have the manpower or the inclination. She was still angry and hurting. She didn’t want to see the similarity in the situations. But she did. Juliette Pittman needed to ask for help before she could be given it. 

“Now you’re the one who is being deliberately obtuse.” Pittman accused. 

“I…uh…no.” Dani shook her head, trying to clear it of voices from the day before.

“Interesting….yes, very interesting,” Pittman mumbled. It was another piece of information to store away, if he ever needed to have something on Nico, it would appear that this woman was the key. Not that Careles was open with many people, but he was taking pains to be sure she didn’t know about his past.

“Pardon?”

“Nothing important.” He went on to tell Dr. Santino about his daughter. “Mrs. Pittman will get in touch with you to set up the initial appointments. Until Juliette can drive again, she will be bringing her. I’ll be sure to warn her you’re cranky in the morning.” And he simply disconnected the call.

Dani stared at her phone and shook her head. What a way to start her day, thank goodness Jeanette was here.  
…………  
 _Monday morning January 16, 2012 – The Woodlands_

Kevin O’Connell knocked on Mr. Careles’ office door. He had the report from the Santino installation and wanted to talk to his boss. Xeno was trying to flirt with Amanda, the IT geek who had worked with the FBI. Kevin had to smile; the two were hopeless. He’d watched them watch each other for months, but this was the first time he’d been able to convince his friend to try to talk to her. 

“You have something for me, Kevin?” Nico opened his door and did a quick check of the bullpen. He shook his head, unsure if he should put a stop to what was going on before it had a chance to get started. There had never been a need for fraternization rules at the Woodlands. Women hadn’t worked in football, except in the front office, until recently, and the front office was a world of its own. He sighed and decided to stay out of it. They were adults, well past the age of consent. As long as his department wasn’t disrupted, he didn’t care what his employees did.

“I’ve got the schematics on Dr. Santino’s security system. This file has all the parts listed in case there are problems and the info on the Wi-Fi booster I added to her wireless so the security isn’t reliant on phones lines. All the components have batteries that will kick in if there is a power outage, and she knows to check them and change them as needed. I’ve sent you an electronic copy of everything that’s in there.” 

“Good.” Careles took the folder. He was tired and extremely glad that this job was completed. “Was there something else?” He could see that Kevin was bothered.

“Well,” O’Connell frowned. “I went by last night to be sure Dr. Santino’s children were proficient with the system, like you asked.”

“I appreciate that.” Nico had planned on being the one to take Ray Jay and Lindsey over the fine points of arming and disarming the devices, but he’d decided it was in everyone’s best interest if he distanced himself from the doctor. Kevin was subsequently assigned the task.

“The kids weren’t very receptive. That daughter of hers is a real pistol and not in a good way. Made her mom almost cry by threatening to go live with the dad. She “didn’t want to live in a house where there was video surveillance of her every move” I think was the way she put it.”

“And this is our business how?” Nico glared. He wanted to ask more, to find out how Dani was doing. He bit down to keep the words from forming.

“Well…uh…” O’Connell felt the sand slipping beneath his feet. He’d been sure his boss would want to know. He’d seen Careles be kind and patient with the doctor instead of simply laying down the law, like the boss did with everyone else. It wasn’t that Kevin thought there was anything going on between the two (after all, this was Nico Careles, he was talking about), but he thought they were friends of a sort. “Well…uh…I think we should be prepared for some false alarms and possible noncompliance.” It was the best he could come up with when being stared down by cool hazel eyes and a clenched jaw.

“I’ll keep that in mind.” Nico waited until the door was closed behind his man before he tossed the file onto his desk, hard enough to send papers flying.

He needed a vacation and soon. The Hawks’ next game was on Saturday. They were heading to Miami to play the Dolphins and would leave on Wednesday. He was tempted to accompany them, but Juliette was out of rehab that day, and Terrance was being discharged from the hospital before the team returned. Nico knew he wouldn’t be hearing about the Pittman’s daughter, but he did have to be sure TK was settled in safely. 

He couldn’t be in two places at once, and that had been proven the night King was shot. It reinforced his plan of hiring an assistant head of security to deal with some of the day-to-day issues, freeing him to take care of emergency situations as they occurred. Ben Tiller would be an ideal choice, if he’d had more experience.   
…………  
 _Tuesday January 17, 2012_

Dani’s appointment with Terrance was more difficult than ever. The man was surly and giving the hospital staff a difficult time. It didn’t help that he was still on the outs with Vivica. It took most of the hour Dr. D. spent with him to get to discover the smallest details of what was upsetting him, and she still hadn’t gotten him to talk about the shooting.

Jeanette had come into The City with her. While Dani was with TK, the blonde had been drinking coffee at the hospital’s coffee shop. When Dani headed over to Washington Heights for her first session with Iggy, Jeanette went to the Red Door on Fifth Avenue for a hair appointment. She’d tried to convince Dani to go with her, but the therapist was too wise in the ways women made choices they lamented. She’d never read a study, but she’d seen it happen time and again. When a woman was in emotional turmoil, she took it out on her hair. She’d promised herself that she wouldn’t do anything that couldn’t be changed until she was divorced at least six months. That gave her until June to deal constructively with her life, instead of going for the quick fix of a hairstyle she’d likely regret  
…………   
Nico drove to Manhasset with his hands gripping the wheel. As much as his emotions were telling him this was a bad idea, the sensible side of him kept him moving. He knocked on the front door of the Santino residence at four in the afternoon.

“Oh, it’s you.” Lindsey recognized him from when she and Ray Jay had been caught selling TK memorabilia. 

“Nico Careles, head of security for The Hawks.” He held out his hand but Lindsey refused to acknowledge it.

“I remember. My mom isn’t home.” She started to close the door in his face, but Nico stepped forward and leaned against the doorframe.

“Ya see: if you’d listened to what Kevin tried to teach you on Sunday night, you could have checked the monitor and pretended you weren’t home, if you didn’t want to speak to me.”

“So that’s what is this about. Mom sent in the big guns.” She glared.

“Your mom doesn’t know I’m here, but since two of my men spent two days installing that system, I expect it to be used.” A small streak of black scrambled down the hall and skidded to a halt in front of the open door. “Oh no you don’t.” Nico scooped up a little black cat with one hand and closed the door behind him with the other.

“She wasn’t trying to escape. Outside frightens her.” Lindsey smiled for the first time. “She’s a rescue kitty, about eighteen months old. Mom and Jeanette took me to the shelter yesterday. I’ve wanted one for a long time, but dad was allergic.”

“Going to make things difficult when you move in with your father.” He rubbed the little cat under the chin, and she was purring a mile a minute.”

“Mom told you?” Who was this man and why was her mother confiding in him?

“No, she wouldn’t do that. What did you name your cat?”

“I haven’t decided. She’s kind of shy. The pound called her Spot cause of the odd white area on her chest and belly, but that’s a dogs name.”

“You’re right, but they might as well have called her Stripes.” Nico raised the cat and took a good look at three odd markings on her otherwise black fur. “You should name her Whiskey.”

“But she’s black, not brown.” Linds frowned.

“She’s has this faint white dot on her chest. It looks like she brushed up against some paint, but you can still see it, and two small white streaks on her stomach. Dot-dash-dash is Morse Code for W. W is Whiskey in the phonetic alphabet.” He smiled and handed the cat back to the girl. 

“That’s what pilots and the Army use.” Lindsey had sat through more than one of Ray Jay’s stupid war movies. She knew about those things.

“That’s correct. Now, call your brother, and we’ll go over the security system.”

In less than half an hour later, both children proved to Nico that they could arm and disarm the system under a number of conditions.

“I trust that you’ll take proper care to use this as it was intended.” Careles watched both Lindsey and Ray Jay carefully, studying their body language.

“Mr. Careles, are we in danger? Has something happened that we don’t know about?” Lindsey looked up at him with Dani’s eyes, and it did funny things to his stomach.

“My job is to be sure that the team is kept safe. Since Terrance was shot, I have tightened up security for everyone.” It was as much of the truth as he could tell Dani’s children without her approval. “Upgrading your mom’s alarm was always on my list. After what happened, its priority changed. Now, she has the same system Coach and most of the players have. My staff does the monitoring, and they are well trained.”

“But, Mom is just a therapist.” Ray Jay insisted. “It’s not like she’s important to The Hawks. What has changed that you need her to be taking special precautions?”

Nico shook his head and simply looked at the children. They really didn’t understand the difference their mom made. “The Hawks are in the playoffs for the first time in six years. A lot of that is because of your mother. She’s an impact player, a game changer. She doesn’t do it on the field but with the players. I’ve put considerable pressure on the publicity office to keep her name and face out of the press, but eventually, it will get out. When that happens, she has to know that her family has privacy and is safe. That’s what this is all about, giving Dr. Santino peace of mind.” 

“Mr. Careles, I’m sorry we gave her a hard time.” Lindsey’s eyes filled with tears.

“I’m not the one you need to tell that to.” He smiled slightly and patted the girl on the shoulder.

“You always ask us to do the hardest things.” Ray Jay shuffled his feet. The man really knew how to put them in their place and he did it without yelling. The boy couldn’t understand why, if he’d only met him once before, it felt as if he’d be letting him down if he didn’t do what he was asked.

Nico shrugged and pulled his sunglasses out of the inside pocket of his suit coat. “No one ever said the right choices would be easy, but learning that is part of growing up.”

He was almost back to the Woodlands when he realized that Dani’s earring was still in his pocket. He’d been carrying it around for three days, and that was the first time he could have gotten rid of it without questions. All he would have needed to do was leave it on the table by the door in her office on his way out. He could have pulled it off without the children seeing what he was doing.  
………..  
Nico was playing with the cool, crystal earring as he sat in front of the fireplace in his living room. He had a fire burning and let the mesh triangle slip between his fingers while he was lost in thought, determined to make it through the night without nightmares, fire or no fire, when his cell rang.

“Careles here.” He recognized the number.

“’Evening, Lieutenant,” Iggy’s warm bass came through the speaker against his ear. “Gotta tell ya, that Dr. Santino, was not what I expected. She’s about as big as a minute,” he snickered.

“She do all right?” 

“Oh, yeah. We spent an hour learning how to fall so she could get back up again and either fight or run. I think she’s cussing me out about now. I made her work hard.”  
………………  
 _Wednesday, January 18, 2012_

The Woodlands was almost deserted for 8 AM on a Wednesday during the season. The team had an eleven o’clock flight to Miami. Coach, Matt, and Nico were gathered in Purnell’s office, waiting for Dani. The click of a woman’s high heel boots echoing down the hall told them she’d arrived.

“Sorry, I know you’ve got a plane to catch” She greeted them and headed for the chair across from Purnell’s desk. Nico was leaning against a small bookcase under the wall of windows, and Matt was pacing between the conference table and office area. Dani uttered a small gasp when she sat down. Her butt hurt, but it wasn’t something she was going to share with the class.

“You all right?” Matt was by her side instantly, reaching for her.

“I’m okay, really, just fine.” She pulled away, not wanting him to touch her. Every muscle in her body was screaming from overuse. Iggy was a dead man, and so was Nico for suggesting him.

“I believe this is yours, Dr. Santino,” Nico quietly handed Dani the travel mug she’d left behind when she’d been there for the team meeting…was that only Friday? It seemed too much had happened for it to be only a few days ago. 

“Thanks,” she muttered, surprised by the weight and warm fragrance emitted from the mug. One sip of the coffee told her he’d filled it specifically for her. He drank his black, but there was half and half in the coffee she was drinking, just like she took it. She squinted, unable to make sense of his actions. It was the first time he’d had any contact with her since he left her home in a poof of cool anger and ignored her text that night.

“Okay, boys and girl, we need to get this show on the road. Connelly and I have a plane to catch. What’s the latest with TK?”

“I talked to his doctor yesterday, and they’ll be discharging him Friday. I know that Terrance has been lobbying for that physical therapy center in Sarasota, Florida, but I don’t think it’s a good idea.” Dani jumped right in.

“They have a good reputation. The weather is ideal,” Matt interjected. “Either that one or the one in Arizona. He has to rebuild the muscle mass he’s lost from spending the last week in bed, or it’s just going to get worse. Training camp starts in July, and that may seem like a long way away, but it’s not. Teek has to get working, and now, or he won’t be ready.”

“I don’t think Dr. Santino’s primary concern is Terrance’s physical health.” Nico stood behind her chair, one hand curled lightly into the fabric padding inches from her shoulder. She’d called him her back up, and it was one of the few places in her life that they were both comfortable with him occupying.

“If you’ve got something to say Dani, then we need to hear it.” Matt glared at the two people who were interfering with his training plans.

“Connelly’s right. If King is having issues with the shooting, you need to take care of them.” Coach could picture next season going to hell if they didn’t intervene now.

“It’s not that simple.” Dani leaned forward to emphasize her words. “I can’t force a man to talk about something he doesn’t want to…” she felt Nico pull away from her and move across the room to stand as still as a statue, with his arms crossed. She wasn’t taking a dig at him, but she knew he saw it that way. “It’s going to take time. Terrance needs structure and familiar surroundings. If you two ship him out of state, he won’t get that. He also needs consistent therapy. I can’t give him that if he isn’t in the area. I’m not uprooting my family for this. You can’t ask me to.”

“Ya know, the Sports Medicine Clinic of Danbury is only a little over the state line into Connecticut. That’s what, about an hour and-a-half drive from the City? They do great work, and I bet I can get TK a spot in their inpatient program.” Connelly pulled up information on Coach’s computer. “Look at this.” He turned the monitor toward Purnell. “What do ya think?” 

“Dr. Dani, can you see him everyday if we can get him in there?” Coach leaned his chin on his fist and glared at the woman across from him.

“Yes.” She did some quick calculating. “I have one other patient who I am committed to seeing. Other than that, Terrance is my priority. I’ll go to him until he is strong enough to come to me.” Coach and Matt nodded, assuming Dani was talking about the female Hawks employee who had been drugged, only Nico knew otherwise. “But, TK has to be in on the decision making process. I’m sure you could pull strings with his contract and force him to do as we want, but that will only antagonize him further. He needs to feel that he has control of his life again.”

“Okay, lets make this happen, people. Dr. Dani and Nico, convince King.” Coach spoke to them and then turned to Matt. “And you, call the Clinic and get this in motion. Good work, everyone. Keep me posted. Connelly, we’ve got a plane to catch.”

Dani was still struggling to get out of her chair when the two men headed out the door. A familiar hand grasped her elbow and helped her rise.

“Thanks,” She let him pull her to her feet. “Iggy was teaching me to land.” She sighed and stretched her neck. “I think I’m a slow learner.” She squeaked as a particularly tender muscle refused to relax enough to move.

“Let me see if I can help. I know a bit about pressure points.” He’d learned about them in hand-to-hand combat training, but they didn’t just give pain, they could relieve it as well.

“You don’t have to. I took some Ibuprofen last night and this morning; the caffeine will be kicking in soon; thank you for the coffee, by the way, and I used Iggy’s cure last night: a hot bath and a large cognac. I’m really fine as long as I keep moving.” 

Nico pursed his lips and knew they were both remembering an unanswered text message, and it was making her uncomfortable. “All right. Don’t forget your travel mug, Dr. Santino.” He headed for the door.

“Wait,” she called out, wishing she hadn’t been so insistent. Just once, she wanted to feel what it was like to have him really touch her, to have his considerable focus aimed directly at her. The only reason she hadn’t was because it would have made her no better than Matt, all those months ago, when he used the excuse of a neck rub as a prelude to seduction.

“Yes.” Nico’s head tilted slightly, and he watched her move stiffly forward.

“I’m on my way to see Terrance, now. I’ll see what I can do about convincing him to stay in the area. It really does need to be his choice.” She nibbled on her lower lip, knowing there was one other thing that needed to be addressed. “I…uh…want to thank you. I don’t know what magic you used on my children…but thank you.”

He half smiled. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Oh, come on.” She laughed. “The kids are using the alarm system properly and without having to be reminded; Lindsey’s cat is named Whiskey for dot-dash-dash, and they…they apologized for their behavior.”

“Have a good day, Dr. Santino.” Nico smiled and headed toward the stairs to his office.

He was going over his revised budget for the coming fiscal year when he remembered that Dani’s earring was still in his pocket. Enough was enough; maybe he should simply mail it to her? Everyday, he took it to work, and every evening, it was still in his suit coat pocket when he got home.   
………….  
 _From the middle of January through the 3rd week in February_

After an unseasonably warm November, December and beginning of January, the weather changed and snow and ice swept down from Canada, pounding the New England states with storm after storm.

The New York Hawks’ unexpected run in the playoffs ended in Miami, when the Dolphins beat them 21-14. 

Dani had been able to convince Terrance to do his physical rehab in Danbury, Connecticut. He spent three weeks there and then moved back into his NYC condo. Still uncertain from the shooting, he allowed Nico to finally install a security system and had a bodyguard as well as driver when he left his house. It wasn’t ideal, and TK was still being surly and uncooperative, but Dani was slowly making progress.

The night before she took Jeanette to Kennedy for an early morning flight back to Barcelona, the blonde finally showed Dani the three-carat diamond ring she’d been given. The women cried, and Santino promised that she would come to Spain for the wedding in the spring.  
………….  
 _Tuesday, February 21, 2012_

Dani’s house was strangely quiet. The children were asleep, and her bubbly friend was gone. It was late, and she was restless. She paced her bedroom, still trying to accustom herself to the new furniture. It was the one shopping spree she’d agreed to while Jeanette was there. It was long past time to get rid of the bed she’d shared with Ray. It had only taken a slight nudge on Jeanette’s part to have her redo the room completely.

Dani examined the antiqued pewter four-poster with glass doorknob handles at the top of each post. It made the room look so much bigger than the trendy wall-headboard, though the beds were the same size. She liked the bright colors of her new quilt. It felt feminine and, like the room, it expressed her, not them.

The sound of a car motor turning off in front of her house caught her attention and sent her flying down the stairs and out the door. She rapped on the window of the black Lincoln impatiently, fully expecting to find Ben Tiller sitting there. She was well aware that someone from the Hawks’ security team drove by at least once a night. The kids had noticed it, too.

“Nico? What…” She hadn’t seen him since their last meeting, before Coach and Matt had gone to Miami. She’d heard about him, but it wasn’t the same. Juliette talked about him in therapy and it was hard to keep her focus and listen as a doctor and not a woman. Iggy told the occasional carefully-edited story about the Lieutenant but she was smart enough to fill in the blanks. And Terrance never stopped talking about him. It made her want to grind her teeth.

“Go back in the house before you freeze to death.” He glared at the snow falling on her hair and getting stuck in her lashes. She’d grabbed one of her son’s hoodies on her way out the door, but he could see that she was dressed for bed.

“Only if you’ll come in and talk to me,” she demanded.

“Get in.” He flipped the locks and leaned over to open the passenger door. At least if she was in his car, he had home field advantage.

“What are you doing here?” She turned in her seat to look at him. “The alarm system is working, and thanks to you, I don’t have to worry about Ray Jay or Lindsey messing with it. Tony Martello is dead,” her voice broke, and she shook her head trying to get rid of the memory of the argument they’d had that morning in her kitchen. “According to the news, they caught his killer. It was some bookie-slash-loan shark who was masquerading as a venture capitalist to launder the money.” Her hands began to shake, and she wasn’t sure if it was from nerves or the cold.

“You need to go in, Dani,” he spoke quietly and covered her hands with his.

“Damnit, Nico, I never thought it was you. Why did you try so hard to make me doubt you?” A month of therapy, support from Jeanette, lessons from Iggy, and simply some distance from what happened had allowed her to put her life in some perspective. She wasn’t completely healed, but she was getting there. Her confidence was back and she didn’t cry at the slightest provocation, only this man, this one, infuriating man could make her eyes sting and bring a lump to her throat. But she was in control now, and the tears would not fall, and her voice would not give out. She would not let them.

“Because it could have been,” he whispered.

“No,” she denied.

“Yes. You don’t know what was going through my mind when Dr. Browning was taking care of you. The only reason someone didn’t die that night was because I didn’t know who to go after.” His words were sharp and filled with frustration, but they didn’t have the shock value he’d hoped for. They bounced right off Dani.

“You think you have a monopoly on violent thoughts?” She glared. “While Ray and I were still fighting over custody, he came by while I was fixing dinner. I had to put down the knife I was using to debone some chicken breasts and walk into the living room, because I was afraid I’d use it on him. I was damned if that man was going to ruin my life and my children’s because he was an ass. A thought isn’t a crime, nor is an emotion. It is how we act on them that is important.”

“Dani--” 

“Shut-up and hear me out for once. Yes, you could have left me there with Dr. Browning or, even dropped me off at home…or an ER and gone hunting to gratify your male need to…to…I don’t know what.” She threw up her hands in frustration. “The important thing is you didn’t. You stayed and were there when I needed you. You have no idea how much I appreciate that. I don’t think there is much you could ask me that I wouldn’t do, because you saw what I needed, when I didn’t have the tools to do so myself. Now, you have to take a step back. Sitting out here isn’t helping me. It’s the same as when you were on my couch. Of course I’m going to sleep. Anyone would. But now, I have to do it on my own, without you, or one of your men, or even Jeanette around. I’m not poor fragile Dani Santino from a month ago, so get over yourself. I’m trying to.” She pulled away and was out of the car before she could change her mind.

Dani had just locked the doors and engaged the alarm system when her cell chirped, indicating she had a message. She read it and deleted it without answering. ‘Call if you change you mind.’

Damn him, did he have the slightest idea how tempting his offer was? Then she laughed at her question. Of course he knew; nothing got past Nico Careles except feelings. Those bounced off his cool exterior. Damn him.


	12. Flight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Note** This has a more mature content, but I think it is acceptable for teens.
> 
> **Guest Apparences** Rachel Young and Dr. Jacob Hood from _Eleventh Hour_ are mentioned. I don't consider this a crossover simply good use of characters that are already out there.

_Wednesday, June 6, 2012_

Marshall had blown into town at Dani Santino’s request. Nico knew Juliette was now considered neutral territory in the skirmishes between the Pittmans as they attempted reconciliation. It was all Dani’s doing, as the girl’s therapist. His old friend had come out of the meeting with Santino more impressed with her work than ever. The story Pittman had told was that Dani had verbally banged both Gabby and him upside the head, told them they were doing their daughter irreparable damage with their bickering and sent them on their way with the name of a good marriage counselor.

In a marathon session, with attorneys from both sides present, the Hawks had been declared neutral, as well. The team was put in trust for Juliette until her parents settled what was between them. Nico was named executor of the trust, effectively making him off limits, too.

“You’re not making me GM, are you? That isn’t a good fit.” Nico protested when Pittman stopped by his place to tell his friend the outcome.

“No, you’re still head of security.” Marshall sipped his cognac. “Except now you’ll be protecting two of the three things I love most: my daughter and my team. I’ll have to deal with the third on my own. I’ve ignored her for far too long.” He contemplated his friend carefully. “You’re looking like shit.”

“Well thanks.” Careles grunted. It was a sign of how well Marshall knew him that he’d been able to see behind Nico’s carefully constructed mask.

“Here, take these.” Pittman dug in his pocket and pulled out a set of keys and tossed them to the other man. “They’re for the house on Martha’s Vineyard. Take at least a week. I know you’ve got the staff kicked into shape. That new woman you hired, what’s her name? Rachel Young, can handle things for that long.”

“She was married recently. It’s Rachel Hood.” Nico smiled when he thought about the odd contrast that was Dr. and Mrs. Hood. She was a slim, cool, blonde, ex-FBI Agent, and he a slightly older, wild-haired, genius, and ex-Special Science Investigator for the Bureau, who was now the new Director for the Center for Biocatalysts and Bioprocessing of Macromolecules at NYU. “I hired her so she could run the day-to-day, but I’m still not comfortable just taking off.”

“Nico, that wasn’t a suggestion. I need you in top form by the time training camp starts. Take the time off and maybe schedule a few sessions with the head shrinker. She would do you wonders.” Pittman was dead serious. He didn’t know what had happened between the doctor and his head of security, but he’d never seen two people who needed to be locked in a bedroom together more than those two. It was a conclusion he’d formed after seeing them together once. Not really together, but avoiding one another from across the length of the large auditorium at the Woodlands. She’d watched Nico when he was concentrating on someone or something else and he’d watched her the second she looked away. It was damn pitiful in Pittman’s opinion. 

“I can’t. There is nothing I can tell her.” Nico’s voice was laced with pain.

“Old nightmares?” The two men were haunted by some of the same memories, so Marshall recognized the symptoms.

“That whole Martello thing, last winter; it brought some things up.” Careles could be honest with his friend. They had fought and bled together, and there were no military secrets that needed to be guarded between them.

“Take the time off and go see the doctor lady.” Pittman shook his head. It had taken him twenty plus years to get his love life figured out and it was still a mess; he could hardly fault Nico for having the same problems. The games they’d played over the years had done more harm than any of them could imagine. But that was between Gabby and him. “Well, if you can’t talk about what’s haunting you, you might want to explain to her why you’ve got her earring on your end table.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He glared, stonewalling his friend. 

“I’ve spent twenty years married to Gabrielle and have subsequently been forced to learn far more about jewelry than I ever cared to.” He stood and walked over to the table by the couch, and picked up a three-inch triangle mesh, studded with crystals. “Swarovski, nice, not cheap, not terribly expensive. You’re lucky she doesn’t insist on diamonds.” He nodded as he made the earring dance. “I’ve seen this before, or one exactly like it.” He grinned as his friend gave him a blank stare. “Dr. Santino has it hanging in a shadowbox, beside her desk. It must mean a lot to her. It’s a damn shame to break up the pair, don’t you think?”

“You’re reading too much into a piece of jewelry.”

“Am I? Well I can always have Juliette return it, they meet twice a week.” Pittman shrugged. When Careles’ only response was to hold out his hand and glare at him, Marshall handed over the earring. “It’s all right to care, Nico.” 

“It’s not what you think.” He denied, though they both knew it was. Frustration bubbled to the surface, and he asked the one thing he’d been determined not to: “How is she doing?” He had seen her from a distance at a meeting and they’d exchanged numerous texts and the occasional phone call, but it had been purely business. He knew she’d had a rough winter.

“She looks about as good as you, though can hide it better under all that make-up women wear.” Marshall Pittman made the world think he floated through life, as a self-absorbed prick. In some cases they were right, but he wouldn’t be the man of power he was, if he didn’t have the same abilities Nico Careles had to read people and situations. All it took was for him to turn his formidable attention to something and he came up with the answers. “Ya know, Nico, I gave that order for you to shoot. I gave you lots of those orders. The blood is on my head for the medical missionary, and the men we lost that day. You were doing what you were told to do by your direct commanding officer.”

“It doesn’t work that way.” Nico’s dark eyes burned with anger, and he glared at his friend.

“It does work that way. We did some Goddamned shitty things, but someone had to do them. I can smell the blood and sweat in my dreams sometimes, but I’ll be damned if I’ll let the enemies of my country win by ruining my life. You’ve been punishing yourself for over twenty years, and it’s got to stop. Take the vacation, see the shrink and for God’s sake forgive yourself, forgive yourself for all of it, not just the combat. I’m giving you a free pass here and I don’t do that often.”   
…………..  
 _Saturday, July 21, 2012_

Nico stood beside the wall of windows in his dining room and watched the sky darken. His half-empty cup of espresso was on the table behind him, the fragrant brew left to grow cold, as he concentrated on the end of another interminable day. 

“Balance, it’s all about balance,” he whispered. He was attempting, for the hundredth time in weeks, to realign his thinking. With shoulders and back straight he placed the palms of his hands on the glass that separated him from the outside world. It was what he had to do...what he wanted. When he wasn’t vigilant of the wall that allowed him to watch without participating, things and people slipped through. That could not be allowed to happen, not again…

“Shit,” he muttered. Who was he trying to fool? Nothing was working, not the vacation, where he’d spent hours and hours at Marshall’s baby grand, trying to lose himself in music made famous by Miles Davis, Charlie Byrd, and Count Basie or since he was home, all the extra hours, carefully timed, at Iggy’s gym. Nothing was working

He reached for his cell and hit speed dial two.

“Hello,” Dani’s soft voice answered in his ear.

“Are you in tonight? I need to stop by. I’ll wait until the children are asleep, if you like.” Nico was surprised she answered so quickly. Lately, she’d been dating. For months, she’d had no social life that hadn’t been connected to the few off-season functions sponsored by the Hawks. When she came to those, she arrived and left alone. But lately, in the last month, she’d begun to date. It was different from before. There’d been a dentist with an upper west side practice, a news anchor, and a professor from Sarah Lawrence College. All of these men had one thing in common; they never made it to a second date.

“I’m home all evening. You can come now. My mother took Lindsey and Ray Jay to the Finger Lakes for the week.”

“I’ll text you when I’m a few minutes out so you can turn off your security camera at your office door.” He was already in his car, unsure how much he could tell her but knowing instinctually that she had the answers.

“Sure, Nico, you can’t have anyone seeing who you’re bringing.” It was snide, but she’d missed the man and was hurt that it took one of his situations to bring him to her.

Forty minutes later he was knocking on her outside office door.

“You made good time.” She smiled up at him. “Okay, who is it. I know Terrance can’t be giving you problems. He and Vivica patched things up over a month ago and are borrowing her folks’ place in the Hamptons for a few days before everything gets wild again.”

“No, nothing that simple.” He looked her over carefully. She had a slight tan and freckles dusted her chest and shoulders and there was something else, he wasn’t sure what. “You look different.” 

“It’s the hair. I cut Ray out.” She giggled. “Well, almost all of him.” Her nose crinkled up, and she looked very young and happy, despite the tired shadows under her eyes.

“Pardon?” The second she mentioned her hair, he zeroed in on the change. He wanted to run his fingers through the strands that brushed her shoulders. It was very straight and looked soft and sexy. He had liked it long, but this was beautiful and distinctly Dani and those were things he could never say.

“All except about half-an-inch of my hair was grown after Ray moved out. It is a completely Ray free zone. Another few months and I will have him chopped out completely.” She’d been glad she waited to do anything until she was sure it was a change she could live with. Seeing the approval in Nico’s eyes reinforced what she already knew about her haircut: she looked good.

“You are one determined woman.” He said admiringly. He was sure it was symbolic on some level and a woman would probably understand. All he cared about was that it made her happy.

“Yeah, I am. So what’s this all about?”

He pulled a dollar bill out of his pocket, held it between two fingers, and angled his body toward hers.

“Is that really necessary?” She turned and walked into her office. “I thought we were past all that.”

He pulled out an audio suppressor and engaged it. “I have need of your professional services.”

Dani turned and looked at him across the room. Sorrow replaced the joy of moments ago. “I can’t,” she whispered.

“You’re still angry about what happened last winter.” He declared flatly.

“No…no,” she shook her head to emphasize her feelings. “I told you that I never believed you had anything to do with what happened to Martello. I meant it then, and I mean it now.”

“I was hard on you, and you didn’t deserve it.” He tried to hand her the money again.

“Stop.” She wrapped her arms around herself, afraid that she’d have to tell him the truth and the world would blow up in her face. “You did what you had to do back then, and so did I. Leave it alone. It has noting to do with…with now.” She refused to say more.

“Dr. Santino, last January you asked me, ‘why’ and I’m trying to tell you, but I can’t do it unless you take this money.”

“I can not be your therapist, Nico.” She stepped very close to him, needing to simply be near him, as she tore what was left of their friendship apart. “I’ll just say this once, and then, we are both going to pretend it never happened and go back to business as usual, all right?” her voice broke, but she forced her eyes to meet his confused gaze. “All. Right?”

“Yeah…sure.” He agreed, not understanding where she was going with this, but realizing whatever was happening had upset her greatly.

“I can’t act as your therapist because I no longer have the ability to remain objective where you are concerned.” She nodded, comfortable at the way it came out. It was dipping her toe into the sea of racing emotions but never really setting them free.

“You are still angry?” He refused to read anything into her words.

“No, damnit. Where is that famous Careles sixth sense when I need it?” She glared, practically vibrating in distress. He was going to make her say it, and there would be no going back, no matter what they’d said earlier. Their working relationship would never survive this. “I care about you,” she whispered and her hand reached out to touch the stubble on his cheek. “I care too much to be objective.”

Nico felt the wall that protected him from the world shudder and crack. “Don’t,” his voice was harsh with feelings, and he pushed her hand away. 

“I’m sorry.” Her eyes filled. She hated that she was losing control when she needed it the most. “I know you don’t do emotions.”

“Do you have any idea what you are saying?” He gripped her by the shoulders and pushed her against the door.

“Yeah, I’m…uh…in love with you.” She could hardly breathe to get the words out.

“Stop!” he ordered, his voice breaking as his wall broke and pieces of it began to fall all around him. “It’s just…after what happened with Martello…it’s just that you think you are.”

“No…no the feelings were there before.” She shook her head, being painfully honest. “And you have no idea how many hours I’ve spent with my therapist dissecting my emotions to rule out displacement or any other coping mechanism.” A tiny embarrassed laugh escaped before Dani could bury it. “I’m sorry, I never meant for you to know. It’s like I said that night in the car: there is no right or wrong to feelings; it is what we do with them that counts. It was wrong of me to…to… pass this on to you.”

“You’re crazy. This isn’t right.” He shook her slightly. “I’m not a good man.” To prove his words, he pressed his body against hers, trapping her between him and door. His lips covered hers, and there was nothing gentle or tentative about the way he kissed her, tipping her head back so he could explore the contours of her mouth as deeply as he desired.

Dani felt surrounded, feelings hitting her from all sides. Her thin tank and linen pants were no protection against the force of his muscles as he stretched and moved against her, fighting to feel all of her at once. His touch left fires of need behind, but she didn’t care. He felt so good, so very good. She kept telling herself that this couldn’t be happening, it was only another of her crazy erotic dreams, and she’d wake soon and discover she was hugging her pillow.

What had started out as a lesson in power and fear suddenly turned on Nico, and he lost all sense of what he was doing. All he knew was that he had Dani where he’d wanted her for months. She tasted of coffee and desire, two of his favorite flavors. Instead of pushing him away and screaming in panic, she had wrapped one arm around his waist and the other was around his neck, her finger buried in his hair.

His hands slipped beneath her tank needing to feel the silk of her skin, just once, he promised, just this once. But as he explored, his fingers became more insistent, traveled further, until he cupped her right breast in his hand.

“Yes,” she moaned, and he could feel her trembling beneath his lips and his hands.

“No,” he gasped and pulled back. Her eyes were dark and glistening, her face filled with need. It took all his self-control to pin her wrists against the door while he caught his breath and kept at least a foot between them. He tried to ignore her exposed breast, wanting desperately to cover her, but he knew if he touched her again, he’d never stop. “This is insane.” His body cried out in need, but he refused to listen.

“No it’s not,” she whispered. “I’m the therapist, remember. I get to make that call.” She looked into smoky eyes and deep want curled in her belly.

“You do not understand. I’m not a good man. I’m not…I’m not like Donnelly. I couldn’t simply walk away.” His hand shook as he carefully pulled her tank into place. “I’d only hurt you more than I already have, and I care too much about you to do that.” His fingers danced gently up her neck, one last touch of her skin against his before he pulled away completely.

“You think you’re so damn scary.” She shook her head as tears slipped down her face. She was going to lose this man. He was going to walk out of her life after giving her a tiny taste of what it could be like, and it was breaking her heart. “You forget I woke up to unimaginable fear one morning last winter. I’ve seen real things, the scary things, but I’ve worked hard and gotten past them. I loved a man once,” she laughed bitterly. “Oh, not like what I feel for you, but when you’re young, you don’t understand the difference. Well, that fell apart, but I survived. You say you care, but if you’re not willing to give us a chance, I’ll survive that too. But life would be so much sweeter together.”

“Dani, you have no idea what you’d be getting into.” He pulled her close and let her cry against his shoulder. “Look at me and listen.” He tilted her chin upward and wiped the tears from her face. “There are things that I can never tell you, things about my past. There are times I wake up from nightmares I can never explain to you.”

“Oh, Nico,” she sighed at his pain. Dani stood on her tiptoes and kissed her way up his neck to his cheek.

“Stop, you’re not being fair.”

“Screw fair, I’ve spent the last six months missing you, trying to get over you. You’re a stubborn man, so I get the feeling you’re going to walk out of my door and my life and I’ll have to start all over again. But this time I’ll know what it’s like to kiss you, touch you, and feel you touch me. Ya think that’s fair?” She glared at him. “You told me a long time ago you were a SEAL. I’m not ignorant. I’ve got some idea of what that means. Hell, the whole world does after Bin Laden was killed. I don’t know your specific demons, but I can guess. You left that man behind you twenty years ago, and no matter how bad he was, he wasn’t Jason Bourne or John Clark, and both of them were allowed some happiness.”

“You’ve been reading too much Clancy and Ludlum.” He interrupted. He knew it had to be the books, because neither man was given a happy ending in the movies.

“I’m not finished. You owe me that much, for making me bring all this to light and then kissing me silly.” She took a deep breath and marshaled her thoughts. This was her last stand, and she knew it, so she went to the heart of the matter. “If you can’t talk about your nightmares, I can be there for you and hold you tight until your breathing calms and your heart rate returns to normal. The night isn’t quite as dark and dawn not as far away when you’ve got someone beside you.”

“Jesus, how am I supposed to counter that?” He stood on the brink, confused, as he ran the odds in his head. Was it really that easy? Then, he knew he’d lost, or maybe he’d won, he wasn’t sure which, but he realized he didn’t give a damn about anything except right now. They’d figure out the rest as they went along.

She shrugged and took a step back, giving him the space he needed.

Instead of walking away, he pulled her into his arms and kissed her, but this time it was gentle, caring, and filled with love. She was his future. He couldn’t understand why he’d been fighting it so hard. It was a loosing battle. She’d already infiltrated his defenses and captured his heart long ago. “I love you,” he whispered in her ear and kissed his way over her cheek and down her neck. “I want to make love to you Dani Santino. I want to learn what excites you and just how to touch you. I want to learn everything there is to know about you: the side of the bed you like to sleep on…the…just everything.”

Dani smiled gently and wiped her tears against his shirt. “I sleep in the middle now, since Jeanette convinced me to get a new bed. Don’t you have a whole file of information on me somewhere?”

“Yes. But there is the occasional blank spot. I was thinking a more in-depth study was called for.” He brushed his knuckle across her tank-covered nipple and was rewarded with a moan of pleasure. “That’s one of the missing areas I’d like to personally examine. Which do you like better? This?” He brushed her nipple with his knuckle again. “Or do you prefer this?” He supported her back with an arm around her as he leaned forward and gently sucked on the other nipple, through the tank.” 

She gasped his name, and her knees gave out. She had to hold onto his shoulders to keep from falling.

“I think I have my answer to that one.” He plucked at the wet material where his mouth had been moments earlier, making Dani tremble as her sensitive flesh felt the pressure of his touch intensified by the damp tank. “Since your family is out of town, come home with me tonight. The first time I make love to you, I don’t want any lingering ghosts.”

“What about your…uh…ghosts?” her voice was husky. She understood his doubts. She was possessive enough to not want to share the same bed with him that Gabrielle Pittman had.

“There are none. I don’t…entertain…at my loft. Juliette Pittman used to come by for dinner when her parents were traveling, during her early high school years, but that isn’t what you were asking about.”

“No, it’s not,” she looked at him from under her lashes, unable to say anything more because she was the girl’s therapist.

“That’s one of the first things I loved about you.” He dragged his fingers through her hair pulling it back from her face and lifting her chin so he could see her eyes. “You’re absolute loyalty to your patients.” He kissed her brow, knowing full well she wouldn’t acknowledge, one way or the other, that she was seeing Juliette. “Marshall mentioned that you were helping her. Thank you.”

“I can’t…” she laid her head on his chest and listened to the steady beat of his heart.

“I know, and that’s all right.” He leaned down and whispered in her ear. “There’s another reason we should go to my place: no neighbors to hear you scream. You should go pack a bag.”

A shock of desire almost knocked Dani off her feet. “You’re going to make me scream?” she asked, equal parts teasing and nervous. She’d lived with children in the house so long that she couldn’t imagine the freedom he was offering, or was it demanding?

“I told you I wasn’t a nice man.” He smiled wolfishly. 

“Do I get to make you scream, too?” she questioned him, her anxiety quickly melting under the heat of his gaze. She ran her finger between the buttons of his shirt and was rewarded with the feel of skin.

“You can try.” He lifted her off the floor and covered her lips with his. She was going to be the death of him, but he couldn’t imagine a better way to die.  
……………  
 _Late Saturday night July 21 and early morning Sunday, July 22, 2012_

Later they lay in the middle of Nico’s bed, relaxed and sated. Dani’s head was on his chest and he had his arms wrapped around her. There was a line of clothes strewn from the entrance of his loft to the side of his bed. Dani squinted and could just make out the misshapen outline of her panties a few feet away. Mr. Calm, Cool, and Collected had run out of patience about twenty seconds after the front door closed behind them.

“You owe me a new pair of panties.” Dani’s voice was laced with joy. 

“I didn’t hear any complaints when they were coming off.”

She laughed and rubbed her nose against his breastbone. It had surprised her how erotic it was to hear material ripping, especially when it had been her panties and tank top that had been under attack. “I think I like sharing a bed with a bad man.”

“Oh you do?” He wrapped his arms around her and rolled over so she was pinned beneath him. “Then lets see how you like this,” he whispered over his skin.

Dani lost all track of time as she discovered what it was like to be the focal point of Nico Careles’ considerable attention. The first time they’d been rushed and frantic, but now he employed all his senses to leisurely examine every inch of her skin. As he touch, tasted, and explored, he demanded that she stay with him and not give into the vicious need that made her cry out in frustration from denied pleasure, so deep it was almost painful. Nico played out his fantasy from that cold winter morning in her kitchen and discovered his ‘Uptown’ girl was far more responsive than he’d ever dreamed.

“I can’t,” she screamed when he strummed his fingers along her ribcage under her left arm, discovering a new delicious spot he’d missed on his earlier inspection.

“Yes, you can,” he demanded as he covered her damp body with his. “Just one more minute.”

Moments later they took flight together, and the world exploded around them.  
………..  
Later, after they’d both come back to earth, Dani lay tucked against his side. Her head was on his shoulder, her body pressed against his when he began to talk. Silent, introspective Nico, the man who lived in a world of secrets and half-truths, began to talk. 

“When you asked me why I was divorced and I told you that some birds flew better solo, it was a lie of omission. My ex-wife was the one I was talking about, though I deliberately led you to think it was me. I needed you to think it was me, because I already cared more for you than I should have.”

“I’m glad you changed your mind,” she whispered against his skin.

“You didn’t give me much choice.” He lay quietly for a few moments, running his hand up and down her arm, enjoying the intimate feel of a woman who meant everything to him and the simple pleasure of having her curled up next to him, her legs entwined with his. “That’s the hard part, caring about you the way I do, it makes me vulnerable. You’re going to have to be patient with me.”

“Nico,” Dani repositioned herself so she was leaning both arms on his chest, looking down into his face, and running her fingers against the stubble on his checks. “Think about this: did you care any less this time yesterday, than you do right now.”

“No, but I’m certainly more satisfied,” he voice was husky and his eyes smoky. He was beginning to understand what she meant. 

“Being together doesn’t make you more vulnerable. If you had disappeared yesterday or would tomorrow, I’d feel the sorrow just as deeply. I can’t see wasting my life being miserable and trying to pretend I don’t love you, when it brings me so much happiness. It’s a source of strength, not weakness.”

“I shouldn’t have taken so long to admit how I feel,” Nico acknowledged. They both knew it was his way of saying he was sorry.

“No, I think your timing was what it was, because it was necessary for both of us. You were coming off a twenty-year involvement. Until you worked that through, you weren’t ready, any more than I was. If this had happened earlier, it would have been an explosion of heat that we both may have run from the next day. I wanted it, sometimes so badly it hurt, but I still had to figure out who I was. I used to be Dani Romano who lived in her mom’s house, and then I was Dani Santino who lived with her husband and children. I became Dr. Dani when I went back to school, but still had to have dinner on the table and care for my children. When I accepted that my marriage was over, I had to find out who this new person was. Until very recently, I didn’t have much to bring to a relationship. Spinning my wheels with Matt and J.D. are perfect examples of the mistakes that I made, trying to be with someone before I understood who would make me happy.”

“And I make you happy?” It was a gift that still confused him. She was perfect in so many ways and he had made too many mistakes in his life. It didn’t seem right.

“You still have doubts?” She leaned over and sucked gently on his collarbone as her hands swept over his ribcage and downward.

“Don’t start anything you aren’t fully prepared to finish,” he warned as his fingers circled her wrists and he brought them back up to his chest.

“You think I couldn’t?” Her brows rose in challenge.

“I know you could. But before you let your inner bad girl out to play, there’s more I need to tell you. You have to know…well…as much as I’m at liberty to discuss, before you get in any deeper.”

She nodded, realizing that this was one other proof that he loved her. He’d said it a few times, but now, he was showing her by letting her into his life, as completely as his honor allowed. She had no doubt that the secrets that the Navy implored him to keep would go to the grave with him.

“I joined the Navy directly out of college. Two years later, I was accepted into SEAL training. I met Carolyn not long after that. We were both career officers and it was a good fit. Three years later, I…well…the diagnosis was PTSD. I was spending lots of time with a therapist and the marriage was no longer a convenient one for a woman who had her eye on a spot in Pentagon.”

“I love you,” Dani whispered, reinforcing the emotional bond that was so newly admitted. It brought tears to her eyes that he’d been through so much and was still whole and sane. She knew enough about PTSD to realize it wasn’t a diagnosis easily given. It also explained the nightmares he would never be able to tell her about.

“Don’t cry, Sweetheart. It was a long time ago.” He kissed her damp cheek and went on talking. “I went to law school at The University of Michigan, after my discharge. The GI Bill covered most of the expenses, but I supplemented my income working at the Law School dining hall. That’s where I met Jason Coogan’s father. Tom was in my class, but we really got to know each other at work. I also met Gabrielle Pittman there, though her name was Stevens then. She was a junior. Michigan is a huge university, and I probably would never have run across her if she hadn’t chosen to eat dinner most nights in the dining hall where I worked.” He felt Dani stiffen at his side when he mentioned Gabby’s name.

“You loved her,” Dani’s voice cracked. It was a statement not a question, because she already knew the answer. “Marshall told me that you earned her, but he bought her.” Her distaste for the man was clear in her voice.

“I loved the idea of her and that’s different. Don’t be too hard on Marshall. It was a sick game all three of us played, back then. Gabby and I were the star-crossed lovers.” He laughed at the description. “But I wasn’t willing to do what was necessary to keep her in my life. She was easily enticed by the status and wealth that went with being Mrs. Pittman. Marshall thought he was so smart, getting into a relationship based on money, but twenty years later, when she walked out on him, he realized that he loved his wife. He’s making a real effort to change. He wants his family back.”

“He manipulated you.” She insisted.

“We all manipulated each other. The only good thing to come out of it was Juliette.”

“You and Marshall are going to have to be very careful. She loves you both dearly, and it confuses her.”

“Should you be telling me that?” Nico looked at her, his chin tilted to the left in wonder.

“I didn’t tell you anything that you didn’t already know. Now, if I can only pound it into her father’s thick head.” She frowned.

“You really don’t like him.” Nico laughed. “Give yourself time. He is more of an acquired taste.”

“I don’t plan on being around him often enough to acquire anything, thank you very much. He hurt you.”

“Oh, so fierce.” He pressed her against him, as emotions he’d only sampled bloomed fully in his chest. “I’m the one who is supposed to do the protecting.”

“Get used to it, Careles. I can’t sit by and see someone cause you pain, anymore than you could me.”

“I’ll accept it in our personal lives. At work, it can’t be like that, or even with people from work whom we run into on the outside.” It was the one thing that could cause him to pull away. He needed to be free to do his job without her trying to run interference for him. It would hamper his abilities and could put her directly into a path of danger.

“I understand that,” she sniffed. “You let the world think you are far more dangerous, than you really are, while you’re protecting everyone. You wear those sunglasses, dark suits, and a scowl, and people buckle. It’s your disguise that allows you to keep the Nico who could be violent locked tightly away and only bring him out when it is very necessary.”

“Jesus, Dani,” he gasped and held her tightly against him. “How can you see me so clearly and still love me?”

“How can I not?”

This time when he made love to her, he was gentle and kind, sending lightening bolts of pleasure through her three times before he pulled her to her knees and slid her over his lap. With her back pressed against his chest his hands explored her slender body. She dropped her head onto his shoulder and his mouth covered hers. Joy ripped through her body and exploded in his, each feeding off the other until they collapsed on the bed in a tangle of limbs.

“I’d carry you to the shower before you pass out, but I’m not sure I wouldn’t drop you on the way.” Nico nuzzled her neck. They were both damp from sweat and exhausted. “You know how to drain a man’s energy reserves, Dr. Santino.”

“That’s one of the nicest compliments I’ve had in years, Mr. Careles.”

Ten minutes later, Dani stood at the bathroom sink, staring at her reflection in the mirror. She’d taken a quick shower while Nico changed the sheets. He had just turned off the water from his rinse off and was combing his almost dry hair beside her.

“Is it really this easy?” She asked.

Nico thought for a moment, recognizing the question he’d asked himself, seconds before he’d stepped through the shattered remains of his self-imposed wall, into the section of the world that contained Dani Santino. He moved behind her and pulled her slim, sleek back against his damp body. “It can be if we want it to be.” 

“And you never lie,” she whispered, knowing full well he didn’t but distracted by his hands as they roamed the smooth silk and flat planes of her abdomen.

“Nope, I never do,” he confirmed. The green in his eyes flashed out and turned smoky when she stretched against him and reached behind her to catch her fingers in his hair.

He never took his eyes off the couple in the huge mirror over the double sink, while he nuzzled his way down her throat and over her shoulder. When she couldn’t take it any longer, Dani groaned and wiggled against him in response. Nico stood to his full height and studied the provocative woman before him. She was beautiful with her rosy body stretched taught like a bowstring against his; sexy hair that teased his skin, and lips puffy from more kisses than he could count. There was a touch of whisker burn along her neck and under her left breast, but it only added to her beauty. He had a suspicion that by the time they woke up, she’d have a lot more and made a mental note to shave more often.

“What are you thinking?” She smiled at the familiar contemplative expression on his face. His hands moved up her body until they curled around her forearms, locking them in place.

She shivered, wanting to turn around and cuddle against him, but the second she tried to bring her arms down he warned, “I’m thinking that you started this, bad girl, now you get to watch. But you can’t let go, not until I tell you.” He wasn’t simply talking about her fingers locked together behind his neck and they both knew it.

Nico’s hands played over her, pressing, teasing, stroking, and learning her in the bright light of the bathroom, like he had in the dim one of the bedroom. He watched her buck and tremble and bite her lip to keep from crying out. “Now, Dani,” his voice snapped against her ear and rumbled from deep in his chest as he touched her deeply with one hand and tweaked his fingers against her left nipple. “Now!”

Her moan echoed off the walls as her body shook and a flash of resounding pleasure caused her knees to buckle. He caught her and sat her on the marble counter between the two sinks. She was still shaking when he stepped between her thighs.

After the storm had passed for both of them, Dani slumped against Nico, her head resting on his shoulder as they caught their breath.

“So much for good intentions,” he sighed as he ran his fingers through her hair and looked into her tired eyes.

“Good intentions?” She knew her mind was still clouded from sensory overload, but he wasn’t making sense.

“Yeah, there was a reason I suggested we take separate showers.” He reached for the washcloth she’d used on her face and ran it under hot water, while never letting her go.

“We would have drowned,” she giggled and then gasped when he ran the warm terrycloth over her back and shoulders.

“Oh, so sensitive,” he purred. “Is it too cold?”

“No, everything is perfect.” She let him support her so she wouldn’t fall off the counter.

“You can’t fall asleep, yet.” He finished with the washcloth, enjoying each quiver or sigh when he touched her. 

“I’m not.” She rubbed her nose against his neck. “I’m just enjoying the way you smell.”

“You are one insane woman.” He cupped her cheeks and smiled, his eyes warm and filled with something she’d never seen before. “But I love you anyway.”

“Good, because I love you, too. Now, help me down, my butt is getting cold.” Dani’s grin turned into a laugh when he picked her up and carried her into the bedroom. Seconds later, he dropped her unceremoniously in the middle of the mattress. 

Before he joined her, he opened the small drawer in his bedside table and pulled out her flashy earring that he’d had for over six months.

“Where did you find it?” She knelt where she’d landed enjoying the feel of crisp, cool sheets.

“Under my pillow.”

“Oh, Nico, please tell me this isn’t the first time in six months you’ve changed your sheets.” She teased, giggling because she knew that he was as neat as a pin. 

“Move over, you.” He slid in beside her, laughing. It was something new she’d brought to him: gentle conversation, and laughter mixed in with passion. He wondered how he’d ever been willing to settle for less.

“Seriously, when did you find it?” She hung the Swarovski crystal earring in her right ear and enjoyed the weight and dangle, as it bounced as she moved her head.

“That first night, after I left your place. I always meant to give it back, but for some reason, I never could remember to.” He reached over and took it out of her ear, placing it back in the drawer for safekeeping before turning off the light.

“I love you,” was all she could get out, as the significance of the gesture filled her heart. He’d kept a tiny piece of her with him all those months. “That’s… that’s…beautiful.”

“You’re beautiful, Love. Come here.” He pulled her into his arms and wrapped his body around hers. 

Nico couldn’t imagine how he’d gotten so lucky, but he knew he was going to do everything in his power to keep her happy and by his side. He lay in the dark listening to her breathe, until he was sure she was asleep, and only then, did he allow himself to close his eyes and drift off, content in the knowledge that there was nothing to fear. His days of solo flight were over.

**The End**


End file.
